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laiaiaioiQioiDiDiaiaiBiBinioiBiQigiDioiBioiBigi i 




OF M0D1B2 




[published 

PHILADELPHIA,PA. 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



BY T. GREINER. 



Burpee's 
Books Free. 



m^ 



Our interest in our customers does not end 
with the sale of the Seeds ; it is our earnest 
desire that every phinter may have a full meas- 
ure of success with the products of Burpee's 
Seeds. Therelbre, every dollar sent us for 
goods offered in Our Faem Annual, in addition 
to all other premiums, has a credit of 10 cts. to- 
ward the purchase of any book published and 
offered by us, if the purchaser desires it. Thus, 
a $2.00 order, with 10, cts. added, can select any 
book offered for 30 cts.; with 30 cts. added, any 
book offered for 50 cts. Or, a $3.00 order can 
select entirely free any book offered for 30 cts., 
or a $5.00 order any book offered for 50 cts., 
and so on, we more than meeting our customers 
half way in our desire to give them Free the 
best books for the Fakm and Gaej)en. 



W. Atlee Burpee & Co., 

Philadelphia; Pa. 



Onions for Profit. 



AN EXPOSE OF MODERN 
METHODS IN ONION GROWING. 



/ 
BY t: greiner, 



AUTHOR OF "HOW TO MAKE THE GARDEN PAY," "THE NEW ONION 
CULTURE," "PRACTICAL FARM CHEMISTRY," ETC. 



1 




i 



PUBLISHED BY _ 

■o 

W. ATLEE BURPEE & CO., SEEDSMEN, 
PHILADELPHIA, PA. 

String, 1S93. 



Copyright, 1893, by W. Atlee ]>uri'ee & Co. 






Press of Wm F. Fell a. Co.. 

1220-24 Sansom St., 

philadelphia. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



WHY THIS BOOK ? page 

The Author Explains, 9 

THE LEADING QUESTION. 
Does Onion Growing Pay? 12 

THE PREPARATIONS. 
Selection and Antecedents of Soil. — Sandy Loam. — Clay. 
— Muck. — River Bottom. — Ideal Onion Soil. — Preliminary 
"Treatment of Soil. — Rotation, 16 

THE WORK BEGINS. 

Manuring, Plowing, Harrowing. — Stable Manure. — Amount 
Required. — Its Value. — Composiing It. — Application and Plow- 
ing In. — Wood-ashes. — Complete Fertilizers. — Nitrate of Soda. 
— Poultry Droppings. — Salt and Lime. — Other Manurial Sub- 
stances. — How Applied. — Pulverizers and Smoothing Harrows, 
etc., 21 

THE OLD AND THE NEW. 
Two Ways of Planting. — The Regular Old Way. — Testing the 
Seed Varieties. — Soaking Seed. — Garden Drills. — Quantity of 
Seed Per Acre. — Sowing. — Sowing by Hand. — The New Way. 
— Its Advantages. — Varieties Suited for It. — Growing the Plants. 
— Hot-beds. — Greenhouses. — Hardening the Plants. — Trans- 
planting. — Cost of Setting Plants. — The Old and the New. — 
Markers. — Dibber. — Trimming the Plants, 28 



vi TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

THE WORK THICKENS. 

PAGE 

A Hard Fight With Weeds. — War to the Knife. — Promptness 
Required. — Hand W^lieel Hoes. — Hand- Weeding the Chief Ex- 
pense. — Weeding Implements. — Thinning. — Hoes and Hoe- 
ing. — Breaking Down the Tops, 53 

IRRIGATION AND CULTIVATION. 
Means op Fighting Drought. — A Soil Mulch. — Mucky Com- 
post and Wood Ashes. — Sub-earth Soaking. — Surface Irriga- 
tion. — Box Ditch — Irrigation by Tile. — Irrigation by Water 
Pumped into Tanks, 6l 

ENEMIES OF THE CROP. 
Insects and Diseases and How to Fight Them. — The Onion 
Maggot. — White Grubs. — Wire Worms. — Onion Rust. — Onion 
Smut, 66 

THE HARVEST. 

Gathering and Taking Care of the Crop. — Pulling in Time. 
— Curing Outdoors. — Keep Dry. — Curing on Barn Floor or 
Under Sheds. — An Onion-Curing Shed, 70 

THE REWARD. 
Marketing and Storing. — The Early Market. — Ventilated 
Barrels. — Home-Made Onion Sorter. — Onion Crates. — Domes- 
tic Spanish Onions. — Wintering Onions for Spring Sales. — Stor- 
age Houses. — Pits. — Estimates of Cost and Profit, 73 

SIDE ISSUES. 
Growing Pickling Onions, Onion Sets, Bunching Onions, 
etc. — The Barletta. Growing the Crop. — Onion Set Harvest- 
ers — Oriion Set Cleaner. — Profits in Pickling Onions. — Growing 
Sets. — Wintering Sets. — Growing Bunching Onions. — Green 
Onions from Barletta Seedlings. — Egyptian or Winter Onions, . 85 

ODDS AND ENDS. 
Onion Seed Raising. — Weight per Bushel. — History and Va- 
rieties, * 95 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



PAGE 

1. Disk Harrow, 26 

2. Meeker Harrow, 26 

3. Planet, Jr., Seed Drill, 31 

4. Little Gem Garden Drill, 32 

5. Deere Seed Drill, 32 

6. Matheyv's Seed Drill, 33 

7. Onion Seedlings Overcrowded and just Riglit, 38 

8. Cheap Greenhouse for Raising Onion Plants, 40 

9. Cheap Double Span Greenhouse for Onion Plants, 40 

10. Pit Roofed with Ordinary Hot-bed Sashe.-, 41 

11. One-Man Hod for Carrying Soil, 42 

12. Box for Carrying Soil by two Persons, 42 

13. Glimpse of Onion P'ield — the Old Way, 45 

14. Glimpse of Onion Field — the New Way, 45 

15. Simple Hand Marker, 46 

16. Simple Push Marker, 47 

17. Barrow Marker, 47 

18. Roller Marker, 48 

19. Dibber Made of Thin Steel, 49 

20. Trimming the Plants, 49 

21. Plants Untrimmed Before Setting, 50 

22. Plants Trimmed Before Setting, 50 

23. Setting the Plants — the Right and the Wrong Way, .... 51 

24. Planet, Jr., Double Wheel Hoe, 54 

25. Planet, Jr., Single- Wheel Hoe, 55 

26. Tools for Weeding, 57 

27. Lang's Hand-weeder in Use, . 58 

28. Table Knife as Weeder, 58 

29. Hoes for Onion Weeding, 59 

30. Plan of Irrigated Field, 63 

vii 



viii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAGE 

31. Irrigation from Box Ditch, 64 

32. Sub-irrigation by Tile, 65 

T^T^. Onion Maggot, Eggs, Larva and Fly, . . 67 

34. Onion-Curing Shed, 72 

35. Ventilated Barrel, 74 

36. Onion-Sorting Device, 75 

37. Onions Crated for Market, 76 

38. Section of Wall of Onion Storage Room, 79 

39. 40. Cross Section of Onion Pit, 80 

41. The Barletta Onion, 86 

42. Planet, Jr., Onion Set Harvester, 89 

43. Home-Made Onion Set Harvester, 89 

44. Sieve Drum for Cleaning Onion Sets, 90 

45. Yellow Globe Danvers, 98 

46. Red Wethersfield, 98 

47. Large Red Globe, 99 

48. Yellow Dutch, 100 

49. Extra Early Red, 100 

50. Prizetaker, . loi 

51. New Mammoth Pompeii, 102 

52. Large White Italian Tripoli, 103 

53. White Pearl, /...... 103 

54. White Multiplier Onion Sets, 104 



Onions for F^roflt. 



I. 

WHY THIS BOOK? 

THE AUTHOR EXPLAINS. 

This is not meant for an introduction. I trust that I 
need none to the reader. But he may feel like asking me 
why I write this treatise, when only a short while ago I 
wrote and published ''The New Onion Culture." 

The explanation is easy. ''The New Onion Culture" 
was intended mostly to present a new phase of the business, 
and to encourage further researches in an entirely new 
direction. As a "handbook of onion growing " it has 
shortcomings, and is far from being complete. It leaves 
too much room for further personal inquiries. I have 
looked the field of horticultural literature in America over 
pretty closely, and am unable to find a handbook for the 
onion grower the teachings of which are based on modern 
methods, and embody (as they should in order to justify 
any claims of being "up to times") the two systems, the 
old and the new, in profitable combination. 

Such a handbook or guide to successful onion growing 
is needed. I know it from the numerous inquiries on the 
subject which are all the while being addressed to me. I 
know it from observing the methods in vogue among the 
great mass of our onion producers. Yes, friends, if you 

9 



10 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

desire to make this onion business pay — I mean, make it 
pay anywhere near the profits that it can be made to pay — 
you will have to leave the old ruts, and adjust your methods 
to fit modern conditions. If you are plodding along, and 
just manage to get poor pay, or even a moderate one, for the 
actual work done in the onion field, I do not concede 
that the business pays you. The onion grower has to 
invest money, — in land, in manures, in seed, in labor. 
He ought to get some dividends over and aboye his out- 
lay. He ought to get big pay for his experience and skill, 
if he brings any to bear on his enterprise, and something 
for his thought and study. Of course, if he does only 
mechanical work, and has neither experience nor skill ; if 
he follows the same methods that his father did many years 
ago, and makes no effort whatever to improve his ways, — he 
is not entitled to any reward save the ordinary price of 
unskilled labor, and is not likely to get more. 

The premium — and a big one at that — is always on supe- 
rior skill. Thought and study pay a hundred per cent, 
where mechanical labor pays ten. If you would be an 
onion grower, by all means be a good one. Study the 
business as you would a trade. By reading all the good 
books written on onion growing in America (there are not 
many such treatises, and they cost but little) you can make 
the experience of others your own at a much smaller 
expense than if you gathered it in the field yourself. 

On the other hand, I am going to lay particular stress 
upon it that you must verify this experience of others in 
your own field practice. Only don't attempt to reap prac- 
tical experience by the acre or acres. This is the most 
expensive method of getting experience. Glean it in a 
little patch at first, and as you get strong in knowledge 
and skill and confidence, enlarge your area as you deem 
safe. i. 



^V/JV THIS BOOK? 11 

As I have already stated, there is room for, and need of, 
a hand-book like this for the general onion grower. But I 
would probably not have thought of writing it if my 
friends, the publishers, had not asked me to undertake the 
work. Then I was quite ready and willing to do so. I 
really like to talk and write on matters that I think I 
understand about as well as anybody, and more especially, 
if I see a chance to tell some '' trade secrets " to my less 
experienced fellow gardeners. 

The result of the publishers' suggestion, and of their co- 
operation, is the book as it now lies before the reader. 
May it fulfill its mission, which is to diffuse a better under- 
standing of improved methods of onion growing among 
those willing and anxious to learn, and to aid them in 
securing more satisfactory returns from the business than it 
afforded them heretofore. 

T. Greiner. 

La Salle, N". V., AuUtnut^iSgs. 



II. 

THE LEADING QUESTION. 

DOES ONION GROWING PAY? 

Like along hair in a roll of butter, or a forgotten basting 
thread in a newly-made dress, the question, '' Does it pay?" 
or, ''How does it pay?" strings itself along, seemingly 
without end, and just as annoyingly, through the stacks of 
letters received by me from people in need of horticultural 
advice. It is the question of all questions, and before I go 
further, I will try to give an intelligent answer to it. I 
hope it will save me the necessity of writing some personal 
letters on the same question in future. 

" Does onion growing pay? " 

Here one has a fine chance of doing some plausible 
figuring on paper. ''A thousand bushels per acre is not an 
extraordinary crop ; one dollar per bushel not an extra- 
ordinary price. One thousand bushels, at $i each, make 

^lOOO. 

This, however, tempting as the prospect may be, is deal- 
ing with possibilities, not with probabilities. The skilled 
grower, under favorable circumstances, can grow looo 
bushels per acre. I propose to show that even twice that 
number of bushels is within our reach, and has actually been 
obtained on limited areas; but I would not guarantee half 
that yield to the new beginner, especially not if he be one 
of those young fellows that " know it all." The average 
yield vacillates between 200 and 300 bushels per acre. 

Thus it is with the price. We often get ^i a bushel, and 
sometimes two and three times that amount ; yet, while 
I again propose to point out h6w you can manage to 

12 



THE LEADING QUESTION. 13 

obtain a somewhat larger price for your crop, or part of 
your crop, than the average grower usually receives, I am 
sure it would be folly to build your estimates of profit on 
any such uncertain basis. 

Onion-growing must not be looked upon as a specula- 
tion, nor as a means of acquiring sudden w^ealth. If this 
is what you have in mind, failure will be pretty well 
assured. 

In this respect, the business resembles similar enterprises, 
such as fruit-growing, general gardening, poultry-keeping, 
etc. Some of our smart young people often see "golden 
opportunities" in the hen business. They figure, quite 
plausibly, as follows : ''It costs about ^i to keep one hen a 
year. She will lay in that time 150 eggs, which at the low 
average price of 16 cents a dozen bring ^2, or a clear profit 
of ^r. Now, keep a thousand hens, and you have a sure 
yearly income of ^1000." Perhaps this figuring is faultless ; 
bu.t if the hen of the future is not built materially different 
from the hen of the past, she will, when thus kept in large 
numbers, invariably refuse to perform the task assigned to 
her, but rather content herself with an annual lay of 75 or 
So eggs. 

Does onion growing pay? 

In reply let me ask : Does it pay to grow wheat, or pota- 
toes, or strawberries? Does dairying, or sheep husbandry, 
or cattle raising pay ? 

Some people make these things pay, and others do not. 
The great majority of those who engage in any one of 
them, and stick to it, as a life-business, make their living 
by it, but seldom much more. Those who go in and after 
the first unsuccessful attempt drop out again, are sure to 
lose. The few, however, who by accident or selection of 
their own are working under favorable conditions, who 
keep abreast of the times, and manage with skill and good 



14 ONIONS FOR PROFIT, 

judgment, not only make enterprises of this kind pay, but 
make them pay well. 

Is it your idea to plant a big field in onions, to try to 
make a big haul, and then perhaps turn your attention to 
something else? If so I say: Don't. Your chances of 
success are one in a million. But 'if you intend to start 
moderately and with deliberation, having chosen onion 
culture as a legitimate calling, then I say : Go ahead. Try 
to select the most favorable conditions as to soil and 
market. Learn, and make use of, the best methods of 
growing and marketing the crop, and stick to your business 
without allowing yourself to become discouraged by a fail- 
ure which is possible even under quite favorable conditions. 
The chances are that you will succeed in the end. Well- 
directed efforts are usually crowned with success. 

Study the following pages and profit by the suggestions. 
I can do little more than give general directions. It re- 
mains for you to do the right thing at the right time. 

Does onion growing pay? 

It will pay in exact proportion to your ability to select 
the most favorable combination of circumstances, to your 
own good judgment, to the thought and study you bring 
to bear upon the question of management, to your perse- 
verance, and to some extent, perhaps, to your luck. Of the 
last item, however, I seldom take much account. Good 
management and perseverance will carry you through, even 
if luck be against you. 

Does onion growing pay ? 

I have to touch upon one other aspect of the question, 
and in this respect feel inclined to give a little special en- 
couragement to onion growing. Onions are just the crop 
for intensive farming. The big item in their production 
is well-directed labor, not land. Their culture involves 
some risk of loss to the unskilled of shiftless grower ; but it 



THE LEADING QUESTION. 15 

also affords one of the best of chances to get comparatively 
large returns from " a little land well tilled." With the 
exception of celery, I could not name a single crop so 
promising in this respect as the onion crop. 



III. 

THE PREPARATIONS. 
SELECTION AND ANTECEDENTS OF SOIL. 

SANDY LOAM. — CLAY. — MUCK. — RIVER BOTTOM. — IDEAL ONION SOIL. 
— PRELIMINARY TREATMENT OF SOIL. — ROTATION. 

While it is true that onions can be grown on any soil, 
from sand to clay, and on muck besides, if otherwise prop- 
erly managed and prepared, yet a judicious selection, which 
aims to secure a combination of the most favorable condi- 
tions, has as much influence as any other thing upon the 
question of profit or loss. I know many large grain farms 
on which you would not find a single half-acre of land suit- 
able to be used for onion growing at short notice. 

A Review of Soils. 

Soil that is stony or gravelly has to' be rejected, because 
of the difficulty of economical cultivation by means of 
labor-saving devices. Weed seeds also usually abound 
there. 

Then there are pieces of nice, clean loam, inclining to 
sandy. They would be just the thing, had not a half cen- 
tury's persistent cropping without an adequate return of the 
plant-foods taken off year after year almost ruined the orig- 
inally fine fields, and rendered them unfit for the purposes 
of onion growing, at least for the present. A satisfactory 
crop cannot be expected on poor land the first season, no 
matter how lavish the grower might be with his manure 
applications. 

On one farm I noticed a corner lot near the barn, the 
soil being a fine sandy loam, quite Tich from having received 

16 



THE PREPARATIONS. 17 

frequent dressings of manure and the washes from the barn- 
yard. This, with the help of liberal manuring, would 
prove to be a fine spot whereon to locate an onion patch. If 
it happens to be in sod, and the sod so old and tough that 
it is not likely to break up and give the needed smooth, 
mellow seed bed early enough in spring, it should be 
broken the year before, either in spring or at least by early 
autumn. If so treated, it will be all right. 

The fields of stiff clay, as we find them on many farms, 
are often insufficiently drained, and usually lacking in 
organic (vegetable) matter such as is supplied by applica- 
•tions of stable manure or by turning under clover and 
other green crops. They are almost always lumpy in spring, 
liable to crack in the hot season, and therefore unsuitable 
for our purposes. Otherwise, well-drained clay loams, if 
only rich enough, often give good yields. 

Sandy muck is perhaps an ideal soil for onion growing, 
especially if it can be arranged for sub-irrigation, as ex- 
plained later on. Even muck with next to no sand in its 
make-up is largely used, and can be made to produce good 
crops. But it must have thorough under-drainage and be 
freed from all obstructions and rubbish. If such muck 
soil is almost free from sand, and consequently inclined to 
be moister than desirable, there is some danger that a 
large portion of the plants will form thick necks, producing 
''scallions" or ''romps;" and even the well-formed and 
well-cured bulbs will be lacking the solidity and specific 
gravity of those grown on clay or sandy loams. An 
additional disadvantage of many of these mucky onion 
grounds is their liability to being washed over or flooded 
in times of heavy rains, to the great injury of the growing 
crop. 

The deep, rich, clean, well-drained brown loams of our 
river bottoms are usually admirably adapted for onion- 

2 



18 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

growing, and where such land is at command, there is no 
need of looking elsewhere for the right location. 

Of course, not everybody can have an ideal spot for his 
onion venture. I have had to be contented with rather 
inferior soil for some time, and yet have been quite success- 
ful. My rule is to take the best at hand, and then try to 
make the most of it. Soils not in condition to be planted 
now may be rendered suitable for planting next year or 
the year after. If they are not perfectly underdrained, the 
laying of a few lines of tile will make them so ; if not rich 
enough, heavy dressings of barnyard manure for a few 
years will supply the deficiency in humus and fertility ; if 
too weedy, a few seasons' thorough cultivation will render 
them reasonably clean. 

To tell the whole story in a few words, I would say, use 
any kind of rich, clean soil, provided it is thoroughly 
underdrained, -either by nature or by man's agency, and 
reasonably free from weed seeds, and in such mechanical 
condition that it will allow you to prepare a seed bed 
'^fine and mellow as an ash heap.' 

Soil Antecedents. 

It is always well to know the antecedents of a piece of 
ground in order to reach a just conclusion concerning the 
degree in which it is suitable for onion growing. As a 
rule, its desirability for the purpose increases in the same 
ratio as the intensity of culture that it has received for 
some time back. 

A few days ago a friend showed me a piece of land 
which he intends to plant to onions, and which seems to 
me ideal^ not only in soil but in preparation also. It is a 
deep brown loam on the flats. 

*' You should have seen the crop of clover that grew on 
this field three years ago. Simp>y immense!" said he. 



THE PREPARATIONS. ly 

^* It was cut early, and the aftermath, another heavy growth, 
left on the ground to rot, although the neighbors laughed 
at me for letting so much good hay go to waste. A fair 
dressing of half-rotted stable manure was put on in autumn, 
and the field plowed in early spring. It would have done 
your eyes good to see the crop of potatoes I took off that 
piece that season — more than 350 bushels to the acre, I 
guess — and the nicest and smoothest potatoes I ever laid 
my eyes on ! In fall or winter following the land received 
another light dressing of half-decayed sheep manure, and 
in spring it was planted to beets and carrots. Well, such a 
crop as that was again ! The neighbors haven't had a 
word to say for a year or two about my ' foolishness in let- 
ting so much good hay go to waste.' It has tickled me, 
too, to see some of them try the same method of raising 
potatoes, and apparently with good success. Now, I assure 
you, there have not many weeds been given a chance to 
ripen and scatter seed on this lot for several years." 

This is indeed a most excellent preliminary treatment of 
a piece of land to be used for onion growing. I do not 
know how it could be improved upon. That the rotation 
may be varied more or less, should go without saying; but 
I like to have clover as one of the fore-crops. It cleans 
the field and supplies the soil with the decaying vegetable 
matter which is of such great importance. Following it, 
you may grow crops, for a year or two, which require high 
manuring and high cultivation, such as carrots, beets, 
radishes, celery, spinach, ^r other garden vegetables. A 
rotation of this kind fits the land nicely for onion growing. 

Onions in Succession. 

If we believe orthodox teachings, onions can be grown 
successfully on land where onions have been grown for 
many years in succession. Our old onion growers always 



20 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

State that with proper manuring the last crop thus grown 
in succession on the same ground will usually be found 
better than any preceding one. This may still be true in 
some cases; but there are dangers lurking in the practice. 

Fungous diseases of cultivated plants have multiplied at 
a terrible rate in recent years. The onion blight is quite 
apt to interfere if onions are grown in succession on the 
same soil) and when it once has taken a foothold, it is 
quite sure to attack and cut short the next onion crop. 
As we have no means to fight and conquer it, the only 
safety lies in running away from it by changing the loca- 
tion of the onion patch at least every other year, and still 
better every year. My experience has made me a firm 
believer in the wisdom of strict rotation. 



IV. 

THE WORK BEGINS. 
MANURING, PLOWING, HARROWING. 

STABLE MANURE. — AMOUNT REQUIRED. — ITS VALUE. — COMPOSTING 
IT. — APPLICATION AND PLOWING IN. — WOOD ASHES. — COMPLETE 
FERTILIZERS.— NITRATE OF SODA.— POULTRY DROPPINGS.— SALT 
AND LIME. -OTHER MANURIAL SUBSTANCES. — HOW APPLIED. — 
PULVERIZERS AND SMOOTHING HARROWS, ETC. 

With a properly-selected piece of ground, and an abund- 
ance of old barnyard manure to begin with, we will have 
pretty plain sailing. On ground that has been heavily 
manured with stable manure, year after year, or which has 
been treated pretty freely with clover, and which in conse- 
quence is full of organic matter, also on rich muck and 
other soils abundantly provided with humus, we may some- 
times entirely, or more often partially, dispense with man- 
ures originating in the barnyard, but I seldom feel safe 
without them. When we desire to raise crops that approach 
the great capabilities of the soil, we must give, not only 
full, but also varied rations. I have learned to appreciate, 
and know the full value of, commercial concentrated fer- 
tilizers, and under some circumstances would not hesitate 
to operate with them to the exclusion of coarser manures ; 
but, as an onion grower, I put my first reliance on good, 
old, stable manure. This should be well rotted, free from 
weed-seeds, and free from other infection. Onion growers, 
for instance, often throw their onion refuse— tops and 
trimmings generally, decayed or otherwise unsalable bulbs, 
etc. — upon the manure heap. I would be afraid of such 
compost, as it may carry the germs of the blight. 

21 



22 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

Stable Manure. 

Always pick out the very oldest, most nearly rotted man- 
ure in the yards, and reject all that is coarse, freshly made, 
and full of weed-seeds. We cannot be too careful in re- 
gard to the last-named item, especially when growing' the 
crop directly from seed (in the old way). Weedy land 
and weedy manure render the crop a pretty costly one, and 
usually eat up all the profits. 

Any kind of fine and clean manure will do. It matters 
little whether it comes from the horse and cow stables, the 
sheep sheds, or the pig sty. A mixture is as good as 
anything. Poultry droppings and night-soil are also 
especially useful as an addition to the compost heap. 

But let us make no mistake concerning the quantity 
needed. A looo bushels of onions cannot be manufac- 
tured out of half a dozen or a dozen loads of such manure. 
Unless the land is already well provided with humus, 
nothing less than sixty loads, each load containing a plump 
ton or more, will answer, and soils "that are poor in organic 
matter may require considerably more to give best results. 
By all means be liberal. People accustomed to the methods 
employed by the average farmer in feeding (or rather 
starving) the ordinary crops are apt to be afraid of hurting 
onions by excessive manure applications. Put your mind 
at ease. The more you fill the soil with good compost, 
the more will the proceeds from the crop fill your pocket. 

Market gardeners seldom get from their own stock what 
manure they need ; but often they can purchase it at rea- 
sonable rates, either at the livery stables in the nearest city, 
from dairymen, or other farmers who have not yet learned 
the real value of good manure, or from railroad stock yards. 
A ton of ordinary good mixed manure that is neither fire- 
fanged nor leached out is worth at the established values 



THE WORK BEGINS. 23 

of plant foods at least $2. Frequently it can be bought 
at one quarter of that amount. 

You can haul this manure, probably rather fresh, during 
summer and autumn, and pile it up in great, square heaps, 
if possible under a shed, to rot down. If it heats rapidly 
and violently, pour water upon it, or better, if you have it, 
liquid from the barnyard, and fork the heaps over several 
times. During winter or early spring, haul this compost 
to the field and spread it thickly and evenly. 

No matter how fine and well rotted this manure may be, 
heavy dressings of it should always be plowed under and 
mixed as thoroughly as possible with the surface soil. Fer- 
tilizers of a more concentrated character, such as wood- 
ashes, bone-meal, phosphates, potash, and nitrate salts, I 
invariably apply after plowing. Remember that the aim is 
simply to prepare a fine, mellow seed bed, and that there is 
no necessity, usually, to run the plow deeper than required 
for that purpose. Good judgment alone can and should be 
t*he guide in this. -On somewhat tenacious soil a depth of 
eight inches is about right ; on deep, mellow soil less will do. 

Preparing the Soil. 

Ordinarily, I prefer spring plowing. Clean loams filled 
with humus, especially muck lands, which, after having 
given a crop of celery, or carrots, or beets, or a similar crop, 
were manured and plowed in the fall, however, may be 
prepared in spring by means of deep-cutting harrows or 
cultivators without replowing ; or plowing may even be 
omitted altogether if the dressing of compost was a light 
one, or if the more concentrated manures alone are to be 
used. 

While admitting that a large crop can be produced with 
barnyard manure exclusively, I confess I hardly ever feel 
safe without additional rations of concentrated manures. 



24 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

Concentrated Manures. 

When I can get good wood ashes, leached or iinleached, 
at a reasonable cost, say ^3 or ^4 per ton for the former 
and ^8 or %\o per ton for the latter, I use them freely, qven 
where a heavy dressing of compost was applied. Wood 
ashes are especially serviceable in preventing the ill effects 
of a protracted drouth. Two tons of the unleached article 
per acre are not too much, while three or four times that 
quantity of leached ashes may be put on with the expecta- 
tion of good results. Unleached ashes, however, are a 
strong, but rather one-sided manure, and it will be well to 
add 300 to 500 pounds of bone meal or acid phosphate per 
acre. 

If ashes are not to be had, or not at reasonable cost, I 
usually apply abour one ton of some high-grade, complete, 
special vegetable or potato manure, costing ^40 or more. In 
the place of it we might use a ton of superphosphate (acid 
phosphate, or perhaps Thomas' slag or phosphate meal) 
and 300 pounds or more of sulphate of potash. If kainit 
or muriate of potash is to be used in place of the sulphate, 
it should be applied in the autumn before, at the rate of 
say 1000 pounds of the one, or 250 pounds of the other. 

I never omit the application of nitrate of soda in small 
but repeated doses, using about 75 pounds per acre each 
time, and perhaps 225 or 300 pounds per acre in the aggre- 
gate. It can be sown broadcast like wheat, and the first 
application should be made shortly after the seed is sown 
or the plants are set out. Sulphate of ammonia might be 
used as a substitute for nitrate of soda, and may be put on 
all at once at the proper time for the first application of 
the nitrate, sowing about 250 pounds per acre. In the 
majority of cases the use of these chemicals gives good 
results. * 



THE WORK BEGINS. 25 

I make it a practice to apply even the poultry droppings 
after plowing. They are a most valuable and effective fer- 
tilizer for onions. Of course, they should be dry and fine, 
not a pasty mass. To get them in good condition for use 
and preserve all their strength, I allow them to accu- 
mulate durihg the winter under the perches, upon a layer 
of dry muck, and scatter sifted coal-ashes thickly over them 
Once a week or oftener. You can spread this mixture, even 
at the rate of ten tons or more per acre, over the plowed 
surface, as evenly as possible, and mix it with the soil in 
the subsequent process of harrowing. 

Of course, there are many more manurial substances that 
individual onion-growers may have at command, or within 
reach, such as dried blood and dried fish, cotton-seed meal, 
cotton-seed hull ashes, tobacco refuse, bone-meal, etc. All 
these and many others may be applied to the onion field 
in the same manner as used for other crops, only in greatly 
increased quantities. 

Salt and lime are hardly ever of much benefit on these 
highly-manured grounds, except, perhaps, when the grower 
operates exclusively with stable manures. In that case," 
light dressings (loo pounds salt, 500 pounds lime) may be 
of advantage. 

The most convenient method of applying all dry and fine 
manures after plowing, but before seed sowing or plant 
setting, is by means of a fertilizer drill, which not only dis- 
tributes those plant-foods evenly, but also aids in mixing 
them with the ground 5.nd in smoothing the surface. If 
a fertilizer drill is not at hand, the manures have to be 
broadcasted as well as you can do it. 

Harrowing and Rolling. 
In order to get the desired mellow seed or plant bed, 
harrows, and perhaps a roller, have to be used freely and 



26 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



thoroughly as soon as the last handful of fertilizer is put 
on. On nice mellow soil, ordinary smoothing harrows 
alone may be relied on for doing the work properly. For 
more tenacious soils, or on mucky soils that were not 











Disk Hakuow, or Pulvekizek. 



plowed or replowed in spring, a pulverizer or disk harrow 
(similar to the one here illustrated) will be required, or at 
least desirable. This cuts the surface uj) deei)ly, and mixes 
soil and manure together quite thoroughly. The ordinary 



Fic;. 




MliKKliK HaKKOW. 



smoothing harrow, or ''drag," may be used next, and, if 
the surface is then still lumpy, the roller should follow, and 
after this the fertilizer drill. Don't let up with harrows 
and roller, however, before the surface is entirely fine and 



riJE WORK BEGINS. 27 

smooth. A great help in this work, especially for putting 
on the finishing touches, is the small disk or '' Meeker" 
harrow, here illustrated. It is rather expensive, but ex- 
tremely useful, and almost indispensable on the truck farm. 
Since the advent of this implement we have little use for 
the steel rake in preparing land for the garden seed drill. 

Whatever implements we use, however, it is of the utmost 
importance that the surface is made smooth and even. If 
we cannot secure this condition otherwise, we must finish 
off with the hand rake, and we are then ready for sowing 
the seed or setting the plants. 



V. 

THE OLD AND THE NEW. 
TWO WAYS OF PLANTING. 

THE REGULAR OLD WAY. — TESTING THE SEED VARIETIES. — SOAKING 
SEED. — GARDEN DRILLS. — QUANTITY OF SEED PER ACRE. — SOWING. 
— SOWING BY HAND. — THE NEW WAY. — ITS ADVANTAGES. — 
VARIETIES SUITED FOR IT. — GROWING THE PLANTS. — HOTBEDS. 
— GREENHOUSES. — HARDENING THE PLANTS. — TRANSPLANTING. — 
COST OF SETTING PLANTS. — THE OLD AND THE NEW. — MARKERS. 
DIBBER. — TRIMMING THE PLANTS. 

Until 1889, when I accidentally stumbled on the method 
now appropriately called "The new onion culture," the 
plan of sowing seed directly in open ground where the crop 
is to come to maturity was the regular method, and sup- 
posed to be the only one practicable and profitable. I 
have now almost entirely abandoned it, except in growing 
small pickling onions and sets, simply because I can do 
better when growing them in the new way. Still, the 
old one often gives excellent results, and is yet generally 
practiced. Last year I saw a crop of Dan vers Yellow 
onions on rich, sandy muck that yielded nearly a thousand 
bushels per acre. Under especially favorable conditions 
the bulbs often grow in great heaps or rolls, we might say 
in tiers, along in the rows, crowding each other sideways 
and up and down, and when pulled nearly cover the 
ground. 

This system requires no extra preparation in the way of 
raising plants under glass, and will undoubtedly remain in 
favor with the rank and file of truckers for producing the 
main crop of the ordinary long-keeping onion varieties, 

28 



THE OLD AND THE NEW. 29 

like Yellow Dan vers, Yellow Globe, Yellow Dutch, Red 
Wethersfield, etc. Professional onion growers seldom 
plant a second crop, although they often might do so to 
good advantage. They harvest the crop when ready, no 
matter whether this is a few weeks earlier or later, and sell 
it whenever they think best, often holding a considerable 
part of the crop for spring sales. 

The Regular or Old Way. 

The first aim of the grower must be to produce a large 
crop of perfect bulbs. To insure success in this, early 
planting is one of the chief and indispensable conditions. 
Plowing, harrowing, etc., as described in preceding chap- 
ter, must be done just as early in spring as the soil has 
dried out enough to be easily pulverized. Delay in pre- 
paring the land, and in planting after this, always means 
additional labor, decrease of crop, and consequently risk 
and loss. 

The required amount of seed should have been procured 
in the meantime. This is another important matter. I 
always purchase my supply along in January, and at once 
proceed to plant a few pinches of seed in a box or pot 
filled with moist earth and kept in the kitchen window. I 
then know exactly what I have long before the time of 
planting. Of course, I buy directly of a reliable seed-dealer, 
and I will say that in all my experience seed thus procured 
has never been deficient in freshness (power of germina- 
tion), and rarely in pui;ity. Selection of variety for this 
purpose should be made to suit the particular purpose .or 
particular market of the grower. Yellow Danvers (Round 
Yellow Danvers, Yellow Globe Danvers) is yet the lead- 
ing market onion, a good yielder, and one of the most 
reliable of all sorts to bottom well and to produce sound 
and handsome bulbs. Yellow Globe (Southport Yellow 



30 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

Globe) and Yellow Strasburg, or Dutch, are also good and 
reliable varieties, and favorites with some planters and in 
some markets. 

To fill the demand for a red onion, select Early Red 
and Wethersfield ; to satisfy that for a white sort, raise 
White Globe, White Victoria — Silverskin (White Portugal). 
* All the sorts here named are standard market varieties, 
and good keepers. For mucky soils, however, I would 
restrict the list to Yellow Danvers and Early Round Red. 

Some people soak the seed in tepid water for from twelve 
to twenty-four hours, and then again partially dry it by,, 
''rolling" in plaster, just previous to sowing. Years ago 
I sometimes practiced this myself, but I soon found that this 
special treatment of the seed is by no means necessary, nor 
always convenient. Good seed sown in freshly-stirred 
ground and properly firmed has, in my experience, never 
failed to germinate promptly. Be sure to start the garden- 
seed drill the minute that you have the ground in proper 
shape, namely, smooth and level as a floor. The seed bed 
then is fresh, moist, and inviting, and success will be assured. 

First, a word about seed drills. There are now a num- 
ber of them in existence, and all have their good points, 
and find their friends. People are not all constituted alike. 
Every one has his peculiarities, and what suits one may not 
suit another. Even for the accomplishment of the same 
purpose it will be found necessary to have different ways, 
and means and tools, in order to suit all tastes and views, 
and individual peculiarities, if not even oddities. Every 
gardener should carefully examine the different seed drills 
before buying, and then select the one which seems to fit 
his case. I, for my part, like the Planet Jr., and I think 
the majority of people will agree with me that it is a good 
and serviceable tool. If you have much use for a drill, the 
separate implement will be the better one to buy, while the 



THE OLD AND THE NEW. 



31 



combined drill and-wheel hoe will answer well enough for 
the purposes of the home-grower and small gardener. 

When ready to sow, stretch a line across one end of the 
patch to act as a guide for running the drill. I like to have 
the rows as straight as a string. It looks better, and gives 
better satisfaction. Adjust the marker attachment to mark 
twelve or fourteen inches apart, set the opening as directed 
for onion seed, fill the hopper, and proceed to sow. If the 



Fig. 3. 




Planet, Jr., Garden-Seed Drill. 



seed runs out too freely, readjust the discharge opening. 
There is quite a difference in the size of the kernels in dif- 
ferent samples of seed, as also in weight, and consequently 
some seed runs out faster than other samples. It is by no 
means easy to sow just so many pounds per acre with any 
of the drills now in use. The task always calls for the exer- 
cise of good judgment in each particular case. 

Four pounds of good seed, if sown evenly, would be fully 



32 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



enough for an acre of good onion ground. The trouble is, 
our drills are not perfect, and we cannot adjust them to 
insure the sowing of the exact amount desired. Above all 



Fig 4. 




Little Gem Garden-Seed Dkill. 



things, I fear gaps in the rows. They reduce the yield 
and the profits. I rather sow six or even more pounds 



Fig. 5. 




Deere Garden-Seed Drill. 



to the acre, do a little (and sometimes a good deal) of 
thinning, and thus make sure of »a full stand, a full crop, 



THE OLD AND THE NEW. 



33 



and full returns. I usually, after setting my drill as I think 
from the looks of the seed is about right, put a quarter or 
half pound of seed into the hopper, and sow this. Then 
I make a careful estimate of the ground gone over, and of 
the rate per acre that the seed was sown, and change the 
discharge hole accordingly. Experience and good judg- 
ment will soon teach you how to do this thing just right. 

It is quite likely that the rows, as the sower proceeds 
in his task, begin to get somewhat crooked. In such a 
case I invariably stretch the garden line once, and if the 
patch is large, perhaps two or three times more, to guide 



Fig. 6. 




Mathew's Garden-Seed Drill. 



the drill and correct the deviations from the straight 
course. 

All good garden seed drills are provided with a small 
roller back of the seed discharge tube. This firms the 
ground over the seed sufficiently for all purposes. At least 
I have never had to complain about good seed failing to 
germinate promptly : so I consider all additional efforts 
toward firming the soil entirely superfluous. 

Seed may also be sown without the use of a seed drill. 
In that case I would mark out rows with an ordinary garden 
marker, twelve inches apart and one inch deep ; then 
3 



34 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

scatter the seed in them thinly but evenly, or drop a 
pinch of five to eight kernels every six inches in the row, 
cover by drawing a steel rake lengthwise of the row, and at 
last firm the soil by walking heel-to-toe fashion over each 
row, or by means of any ordinary roller. The use of the 
seed drill, however, is by far the most convenient and 
satisfactory Avay. 

People who grow onions and other vegetables for their 
own use only, usually are not in the position to possess or 
use a garden drill. Many have not even a hand wheel-hoe, 
which I consider much more indispensable for them. I 
myself seldom use a seed drill in the home garden,-asl find 
that hand sowing is much more convenient and expedient 
for the comparatively short rows and the great variety of 
small seed lots. The majority of home gardeners usually 
prefer to buy rather than grow what dry onions they may 
need. If they can once be induced to give the new way, 
hereafter described, a thorough trial, I am sure they will find 
it easier and more convenient than the old method, and 
too satisfactory in every way to be again abandoned. 

The New Onion Culture. 
In my experiments with the Prizetaker and Spanish King 
onions, then yet novelties, in 1888 and 1889, and while 
trying to make every seed count, I discovered several 
things new to me. One is that few vegetable plants stand 
the transplanting process with greater ease than onion seed- 
lings; another, that the crop can be made to mature 
several weeks earlier by starting the plants under glass 
and setting them out in the open in early spring ; a 
third, that not only the size of the individual bulbs, but 
also the number of bushels per acre can be largely increased 
by these means; a fourth, that the dreaded task of weeding 
is reduced to a minimum ; and i fifth, that the crop is made 



THE OLD AND THE NEW. 35 

generally more valuable and profitable than when grown in 
the old way. 

A full-fledged new system has been evolved from these 
first trials and accidental discoveries, and is now quite 
generally known as ''The New Onion Culture," a name 
under which I introduced it in 1890. 

While the idea is not new, its application is. Gardeners 
in Old England have for many years practiced a similar 
system in growing extra large and fine bulbs for exhibition 
purposes, and in some parts of the United States onions for 
bunching have also been grown in the same way. There 
is no record, however, showing that anybody before me 
has ever thought of applying the system to field culture on 
an extensive scale. Now it is being practiced by many 
progressive growers with eminent success, and continues to 
grow in favor with all who have tested it. 

For myself, I have little use for the older plan, simply 
because the new system secures me several times the net 
proceeds that I can get by following the other. But I do 
not grow Danvers, nor Wethersfield, nor any of the old 
standard kinds, and never attempt to keep my crop over 
winter for spring sales. Quite the contrary. I always aim 
to throw my whole crop into the market as early in fall as 
I can get it ready, and thus avoid risk and losses. 

I can grow a selected, large variety of the Yellow Dutch 
type (which, by the way, is a most excellent keeper, and 
even if grown thus early is well suited for wintering over 
if desired) and sell it in August at the good prices then 
usually ruHng, long before the old-school onion grower has 
a ripe bulb. 

For main crop, however, I grow the large new varieties 
of the Yellow Spanish type, Prizetaker, Spanish King, etc., 
especially the former, and for a white sort the newer White 
Victoria. The new onion culture is particularly suited to 



36 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

all large foreign sorts, and the trouble is only that we find 
so few long-keepers among them. The Prizetaker, however, 
keeps fairly well, and when properly grown and cured can 
be wintered over successfully. I often grow them to weigh 
a pound and a half apiece, and find no difficulty to sell 
them at a good price. 

Selection and preparation of the land are the same, 
whether onions are to be grown after the one or the other 
plan, and earliness also is a chief point of importance in 
either case. The plants should be ready for setting out in 
the open ground just as soon as the latter can be prepared 
according to directions given in preceding chapter. 

Growing the Plants. 

The first and chief thing — and really the only difficulty 
to be met in practicing the new way — is to grow the plants. 
Perhaps we might ~ buy them. Mr. A. J. Root, of Ohio, 
one of the first men who saw the advantages of the new 
system and helped to develop it, was also the person who 
first hit upon the idea of growing* onion plants for sale. 
Quite a business was done in this line the past season. 
Probably it will not be long before Prizetaker and White 
Victoria onion seedlings will be quoted by the thousand and 
hundred thousand in all seed catalogues. 

Most growers, however, will prefer to raise their own 
plants. I do, because I save money by so doing. Of 
course, they must be grown under glass and in artificial 
heat. In this locality the plants should be ready to go out 
into the open air not much later than first week of May, 
and consequently seed should be sown from middle of 
February to middle of March at the latest. This is a very 
important point if we grow Prizetaker or other large, late 
sorts. Poor plants, set late, I find, are more liable to 
produce worthless, thick-necked -jomps than to produce 



THE OLD AND THE NEW. 37 

fine, sound, well-finished bulbs. With the ordinary earlier 
sorts there is less risk from this cause, but an early start is 
important just the same, for without it we will lose our 
chances of securing the high prices of the crop ruling 
the markets previous to the advent of the main crop. 

For the purposes of the home-grower a box filled with 
nice, clean sandy loam and set in a kitchen window will 
answer. Buy an ordinary paper of the desired onion va- 
riety and sow the seed thinly, either in rows two or three 
inches apart or broadcast, cover with fine soil or sand 
to the depth of a half or three-quarters of an inch, and 
firm well. Apply water as needed to keep the soil moist 
(not wet), and after the plants make their appearance pull 
up all weeds that may start. If the onion seedlings are 
" as thick as hair on a dog," they will require thinning, 
and, at any rate, if in the least crowded, the tops should 
be shortened by shearing or clipping for the purpose of 
making the young plants short and stocky. One good 
plant is worth more than a dozen poor, spindling things. 
A good plant is easily transplanted and sure to pass 
through the operation uninjured, no matter how dry the 
weather may be. The crowded, spindling plant, however, 
is liable to lose its life under unfavorable conditions, and, 
at any rate, will require an unreasonably long time to get 
established in its new quarters, and to begin a new, strong 
growth. 

Heretofore I have grown my plants in hot-beds, some- 
times even in cold frames. For the colder Northern 
States artificial heat is indispensable to secure all the ad- 
vantages of the new method. Cold frames may do in the 
South. I also prefer glass sash, while in milder climates 
muslin-covered frames may give all the protection needed. 

The hot-bed should have a mild, lasting heat, which can 
be secured by an eighteen-inch layer of well-tempered^. 



38 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



closely-packed horse manure, or a mixture of horse and 
sheep manure. It is not necessary, nor even desirable, to 
use extremely rich soil. An ordinary rich, sandy loam or 
sandy muck, freshly drawn and spread over the manure 
about six inches deep, is better and safer than old hot-bed 
compost, which is liable to be infected with fungus spores, 
and pcrhajis full of animal life. A mixture of clean sand 



Fig. 7. 




Overcrenvded. Just Right. 

Onion Seedlings. 



and rich, clean loam is all right. A little lime may be 
added to the hot-bed soil as a precaution against the multi- 
plication of earthworms. 

Frequently the young seedlings, after having taken a 
good start, suddenly lose their bright, healthy color ; the 
ends of the tops dry up, and many of the plants die down 
entirely — all without apparent cause. I think if soil is 
prepared according to my directions, not made excessively 



THE OLD AND THE NEW. 39 

rich by adding great quantities of manure and ashes, the 
seedlings will grow all right. 

For the future, I shall prefer to grow my plants in the 
greenhouse, either in flats or in bench beds. Here Feb- 
ruary is often our coldest month, and hot-bed making at 
that time not always an easy or pleasant task. In the green- 
house we can start our plants just at the proper time, no 
matter how the weather may be. Manure heat, also, is not 
always reliable, and the grower goes much safer when he 
trusts in one of Hitchings & Co.'s boilers, and a system of 
hot-water pipes. 

- I believe that most home gardeners could afford to run 
a simple, cheap, small greenhouse, for the conveniences in 
table delicacies, in flowers, in plants for spring setting, etc., 
which it can be made to furnish during the season when 
out-door gardening is out of the question. Certainly, the 
*' onion grower for profit " should have a house of this kind, 
and really I cannot see how he can well afford to get along 
without it. Its possession practically insures success from 
the start, while the onion-plant crop in it may be preceded 
by a crop of forced vegetables, or flowering plants, etc., 
and followed by a crop of tomato, pepper, ^gg, and other 
plants. In fact, such a house need not be idle many months 
of the year. 

In Figs. 8 and 9 the reader will find plans of two simple 
and cheap greenhouses suited to this purpose. The single 
span may be 18 feet wide, or the double-span house 20 feet 
wide. To give bench space sufficient for raising the first- 
class plants required to plant an acre of ground, make the 
narrower house 25 feet, and the wider one 22 feet long. 
This will be about right. Either house, including boiler, 
heating-pipes, and all other fixings, should not cost much 
over ^^00. Their demands for coal and attendance will be 



40 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



very modcrale. To raise plants for larger areas, make the 
house correspondingly longer. 

Many growers are not in the i)osition or humor to put so 
much money in a greenhouse. With j)lenty of hot-bed 
sashes at one's disposal, it is easy enough to erect a struc- 



FiG. 8. 




SCALK OF I'KKT 



Cheap Gkbbnhuusb fok Raisini; Onion Plants. 



Fig. 9. 




SCALK l>l' KKKl' 



J I ■ I I I I 1 I r— r— , ; , 

2 4 t. b ;(| ,u ._.(, 

Cheap Double Span Gkhenhoushs. 



ture, such as illustrated in Fig. 10. A simple framework, 
a few boards, the benches, the sashes for a roof, and a flue 
running through the center of house, connected at lower 
end with the fire-place and at the upper end with a chim- 



THE OLD AND THE NEW. 



41 



ney — include about everything that is needed. The actual 
cash outlay need not exceed ^50. The illustration makes 
the management plain and further description unnecessary. 
Right here, however, I wish to say that the frequent 
renewal of the bench soil is not only desirable, but dictated 
by prudence. Germs of plant diseases and insects soon 
accumulate in old soil under the congenial conditions of 
uniform warmth and moisture. The safest way is to 
remove every bit of soil out of the houses every fall, and 

Fig. 10. 




SCALE OP FEET 



2 4 G 8 10 :5 

Pit Roofed with Hot-Bed Sashes. 



put in a new supply. Devices such as shown in Fig. 11, 
which represents a one-man hod, and Fig. 12, which repre- 
sents a box to be carried between two persons, come very 
handy in carrying soil into and out of the greenhouses. 

Our first aim in raising plants must be to get the beds, 
benches, or flats well occupied with plants, and yet avoid 
overcrowding, which would lead to crippling the plants. 
If we make furrows three inches apart and about one-half 
to three-quarter inches deep, and can manage to get an 
even average of 12 to 15 plants to the inch of row, we will 
have about 500 plants on a square foot; and this will be 



42 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



just about right. There will be no undue crowding. Drop 
25 to 30 seeds to the inch of row (making allowances for 
losses or failure of germination), cover, and firm well. In 
the right kind of soil and the proper temperature, such 
seeding will give plants enough to come up to our standard. 

Fig. II. 




One-Man Hod. 



When bottom heat fails, as it occasionally does in so-called 
hot-beds, a large portion of the seed is liable to lie dormant 
in the ground for a long while, perhaps until the time that 



Fig. 12. 




Box FOR Carrying Soil by Two Persons. 



the plants should be set. To provide against such acci- 
dent, I always sow seed in manure-heated beds much more 
thickly than required under favorable conditions, using 
one and a half to two ounces per, ordinary three by six 



THE OLD AND THE NEW. 43 

sash. Should the greater portion of the seed germinate 
promptly, the plants would soon stand too thickly, and 
must be thinned out. By all means use all reasonable 
means to obtain strong, stocky plants, not weakly, spindling 
things. On success in this hinges the final success. I like 
to have my onion plants, when to be set out, not less than 
three-sixteenths and, better, fully one-eighth inch in 
diameter at the bottom. 

For a week or two prior to transplanting plenty of air 
and exposure should be given. I usually remove the 
sashes entirely from the hot-beds. That this cannot be 
done with the greenhouse is its only disadvantage. If you 
cannot harden the plants properly otherwise, and when 
grown in flats, the latter may be removed to cold frames 
for some days or weeks, and here subjected to the im- 
portant hardening process. True, the onion is considered 
hardy, and able to endure considerable frost without injury. 
Pampered, coddled greenhouse plants, grown quickly in 
congenial environments, have to be gradually accustomed 
to hardships, or they will suffer. A single light frost would 
kill them if set out in open ground without previous 
hardening off. 

When the young plants are of proper size and condition, 
and the soil in good working order and prepared accord- 
ing to directions, no time should be lost to begin the job 
of transplanting, and to push it to completion as rapidly 
as possible. 

To set the 150,000 or more plants required to plant an 
acre is no child's play, although mere children may be 
trained to perform the labor. The miscellaneous lot of 
youngsters that I usually engage for this work are doing 
well, I think, if they set out 2000 plants each per day. As I 
pay them about fifty cents a day, to plant an acre would cost, 
therefore, in labor of transplanting alone, not less than $45. 



44 ONIONS FOR PROFIT, 

The regular hands employed by professional gardeners 
and truckers, however, are accustomed to handle and set 
all kinds of plants, and among these hands we will find 
some capable of putting out from 6000 to 8000 plants a 
day. The onion grower who controls that kind of labor 
will not be scared by the task of planting onions in this 
way by the acre, or acres. Mr. A. J. Root, of Ohio, esti- 
mates the cost of setting the plants at ^25 per acre. Mr. 
John F. White, of Mount Morris, N. Y., who grew three 
acres by the new method this year, and intends to more 
than treble that area next season, tells me that twelve of his 
men — all used to handling celery and cabbage plants — will 
plant an acre of onions in a day. The cost of the job, 
therefore, depends altogether on the kind of labor you can 
get. 

I always aim for the largest yield, and for this reason 
crowd my plants all I dare to. I find that twelve inches 
distance between the rows is just about right. Mr. White 
thinks of making them ten inches apart in future, but I 
would advise against it. 

One of the greatest mistakes, however, that we are apt to 
make, and that all who have tried the new method, myself 
included, have heretofore invariably fallen into, is to set 
the plants too far apart in the rows. In growing onions by 
the old method, we thought nothing of leaving from one to 
three plants to the inch of row, and we expected to see the 
bulbs crowd each other sideways, and grow in heaps and 
tiers. Just take a look at the illustration of part of a field 
showing the old way of growing onions, and see how thickly 
they stand in the rows. Then, look at the next picture, 
which shows onions grown by the new plan, and note how 
far apart the bulbs are. The mistake here made is quite 
apparent. There are great gaps in the rows, and only here 
and there are the onions close enough together to give a 



THE OLD AND THE NEW. 



45 



full crop. Now and then somebody claims that the old 
method gives him nearly as big a yield as the new one. I 
only wonder that it does not often give a much larger one. 
When we set onions from four to six inches apart in the 



Fig. t: 




Glimpse of Onion Field. — The Old Way. 



rows (and it seems hard work to make boys — and men, too, 
— who wish to get over the ground at a good rate, set their 
plants as close as desired and ordered) we should not 



Fig 14. 







Glimpse of Onion Field. — The New Way. 



look for more than half a crop. Even the largest varie- 
ties (Prizetaker, Victoria, etc.) require not over three 
inches space in the row, and ordinary kinds should not 
be planted more than two inches apart. This point is of 



46 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

greatest importance. If we neglect to set all the plants 
that we have room for, we must not complain if the crop 
falls short of our expectations, and far short of what the 
land is able to produce. 

Setting the Plants. 

The first step in the operation of setting the plants is to 

mark out the rows. A garden marker, such as is shown in 

Fig. 15, is quickly and easily made, and will do well enough 

when you have nothing better. You have to pull it over the 

Fig. 15. 




Simple Hand Marker. 

ground, and when you want to see what the marker is doing 
you have to walk backward, like a river-crab, and in the 
meantime perhaps get out of the right direction yourself 

I like a marker that is to be pushed ahead, not pulled 
after you, and that will enable the operator to keep the 
direction, and see whether he makes straight marks or 
crooked ones. 

Fig. 16 illustrates an extremely simple device. To make 
this marker, take three pieces of board, say fifteen or eighteen 
inches long, rounded off sleigh-runner fashion ; have them 
twelve inches apart, nail a piece across the top on the 
straight side, and fasten a handle, as'shown. 



THE OLD AND THE NEW. 



47 



A barrow marker is shown in Fig. 17. Have the teeth 
slanting slightly backward. The illustration makes a further 
description unnecessary. 



Fig. 16. 




Simple Push Marker. 



I prefer the roller marker, illustrated in Fig. 18, to 
all other similar devices. Any light garden roller will 



Fig. 17. 




Barrow Marker. 



do, even if made rather roughly out of a piece of oak or 
chestnut log, say three or four feet long and a foot or so in 
diameter. A plain roller could be made to answer, if you 



48 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



will stretch two clothes lines across, and then roll the 
machine along over them. This makes good marks for 
setting plants, and one can get them perfectly straight in 
this manner, a task not quite so easy with the ordinary 
marker. It is more convenient, however, to fasten .pieces 
of rope around the roller, one foot apart, one for each mark. 
But the greatest advantage of this device is that cross-marks 
can be made at the same time. Simply nail pieces of rope 
or clothes-line lengthwise of the roller between the ropes 

Fig. i8. 




ROLLEK MaKKEK. 



encircling it. The cross-marks will serve as a kind of guide 
to the planters, and, if they are careful, or are held strictly 
to the mark, they can easily set the plants at a uniform dis- 
tance of each other. If the cross-marks are, say, one foot 
apart, set three Prizetaker plants between each two marks, 
and one right in it. 

In clean, mellow loam or muck, and with good plants, 
the task of setting the plants is aiT easy one. Some of my 
planters prefer to do the job with the fingers alone, without 



THE OLD A AD THE NEW. 



49 



using a dibber. But it is hard on a tender finger, especially 
on the index finger, that has to punch the holes. Usually, 
it is more convenient to make the holes with a dibber, 
which may be simply a sharpened stick of hard wood, with 
or without handle, or a dibber as illustrated in Fig. 19. 

Fig. 19. 




Steel Dicbek. 



Fig. 20. 



This is made of a piece of thin steel, seven and one-half 
inches long and one and one-half inches wide, shaped and 
supplied with handle or knob, as shown. 
The surface should be finished off on an 
emery wheel. 

Carefully pull the plants from the seed-bed 
or flat. Straighten them out in bundles ; if 
the fibrous roots are excessively long clip off 
the ends, and also twist or cut off part of 
the tops if they are rather long and weak. 
You can get an idea about the way this 
should be done by examining Fig. 20. The 
untrimmed plants, if they are at all long and 
unwieldy, are apt to lean or fall over, as 
illustrated Sn Fig. 21, especially if the 
weather and soil should be dry at the time 
of setting. The tops also are liable to be 
in the way of the wheel-hoe for some time, 
and the patch has not that appearance of neatness found 
where the plants were properly trimmed. As shown in 
4 




/IM 

Trimming the 
Plants. 



50 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



Fig. 2 2, they should stand up stiff and strong, like rows of 
soldiers. The plants thus prepared may be distributed along 
the rows just ahead of the planters, or the latter may each 



Fig. 21. 




carry a bundle of them as they move along. If you have 
a number of hands at this work, the better plan is to have 
a boy attend to the plants and their, proper distribution, so 



Fig. 22. 




^--^ 



U.v<&x^^ 



# 



-^ N^^:J^^ N>5^5>"<s$5$fv,^-^-- 



Plants Trimmed Before Setting. 



that the planters are always well provided, and will not be 
compelled to break into the regular job for the sake of 
getting the needed plants. 

As I have already stated, onion plants are easy things to 
transplant, and will live if the jc^Jj is half done. But we 



THE OLD AND THE NEW. 



51 



desire to have them regain their firm footing and begin a 
new, vigorous growth as soon as possible after the transfer, 
and for this reason the planter should not fail to pack the 
soil firmly about the roots. Every planter, of course, should 
learn to perform the whole operation quickly and expe- 
ditiously, and every individual can go at it in his own way, 
according to his own peculiarities, provided he has nimble 
fingers and makes quick moves. 

How deep should the plants be set? I think that we 
should aim to get the lower end of the bulb one inch below 



Fig. 23. 




Setting the Plants. 

a, the wrong way. 

b, the right way. 

the surface of the ground ; but if it gets a little deeper no 
harm will result from it. 

Youngsters, if employed to set out plants, will bear watch- 
ing until they have learned how to do the work just right. 
Sometimes they get into the habit of crowding the plants 
into the soil in such a manner that the roots are pushed 
upward, and the plants appear as shown at a, in Fig. 23, 
while the roots should be inserted as far as possible down- 
ward, as shown at b. 

A word more in regard to growing onions on the new 



52 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

plan in the Southern States. Let me quote from a recent 
bulletin of the North Carolina Agricultural Experiment 
Station (by Prof. W. F. Massey), as follows: — 

'' There are two ways in which the transplanting method 
may be practiced in the South : (i) by sowing the seed in 
a plant-bed in October and transplanting to their perma- 
nent place in February; (2) by sowing the seed in a cold 
frame under glass in January and transplanting in February, 
after gradually hardening them to the air. The Italian 
and Spanish varieties we consider the best for our purposes. 
The transplanting of onions in a young, growing state 
always results in a great increase in size. Why it does so 
we cannot explain, but the fact is evident. We think it 
probable that the practice of sowing the seed early in Oc- 
tober, on well-prepared beds of light soil, and then trans- 
planting them in February or March to the land from 
which the celery crop has just been taken, will finally be 
the rule with us, as the sowing under glass in January 
involves more skill, trouble, and expense." 



VI. 
THE WORK THICKENS. 

A HARD FIGHT WITH WEEDS. 

WAR TO THE KNIFE. — PROMPTNESS REQUIRED. — HAND-WHEEL HOES. — 
HAND-WEEDING THE CHIEF EXPENSE. — WEEDING IMPLEMENTS — 
THINNING.- HOES AND HOEING. — BREAKING DOWN THE TOPS. 

• Whatever method of growing onions you employ, the 
fight against weeds should be begun promptly and carried 
to a finish. This means war to the knife. The frequent 
stirring of the surface soil between the rows and about the 
plants which it involves incidentally furnishes one of the 
best means of protection against drought. 

Hand-weeding is a tedious and expensive job. We do not 
desire to have more of it to do than is absolutely necessary. 
Promptness in the use of the wheel hoe, and in that of the 
hand-weeder, will take the sting out of the task. Neglect 
a patch once, and let it grow up in weeds, and the best 
thing you can do is to give it up as a bad job. To redeem 
such a patch would probably cost more than the whole 
crop would be worth in the end. Under no consideration 
should an onion field ever be allowed to assume a weedy 
appearance. 

Wheel Hoes. 

The first thing we need is a good hand-wheel hoe. There 
are a number of them in the market that do first-rate work, 
and may be relied upon. I like the Planet, Jr. as well as 
any other, and for a large field the double-wheel hoe is the 
most necessary and convenient, although it is well to have 
a single-wheel hoe, too. Some people like the Gem of the 

53 



54 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



Garden. For cultivating among onions and other closely 
planted stuff in the earlier part of the season I ordinarily 
use a Gregory's finger-weeder, which, with a little practice, 
does excellent work. It has four knives, or weeding blades, 




,.Lll4I.i J^J^f^^^^ 



Double-Wheel Hoe. 



two in front, which can be set narrower or wider, at will, 
instantaneously by a simple twist of the operator's hands, 
and made to cut close to the row, or even into it, to remove 
a stray weed, and two stationary blades a little further back. 



THE WORK THICKENS. 



55 



For the earlier ciiltivatings we want one or the other of 
these double-wheel hoes. They straddle the row, and allow 
the operator to direct all his attention upon a single row. 
The single-wheel hoes, among them the Planet, Jr., and 
Ruhlman's, which latter is also a serviceable implement, 
come handy after the onions are half grown. 

No man can hope to be successful in commercial onion- 
growing without being well equipped with these imple- 
ments, or without using them, less as weed slayers^ as they 
have sometimes been called, but rather as preventives 
against weeds. 

Fig. 25. 




Single-Wheel Hoe. 



The fight should begin before weeds can be seen. The 
drill roller, which firms the soil after the seed has been 
deposited in the ground, leaves a mark indicating the exact 
location of the row as plainly as can be desired. There is 
no need of waiting until the plants are up. A week or ten 
days after the seed is sown by the old method, or imme- 
diately after the plants have been set by the new system, 
the wheel hoe should be started. Do the work thoroughly, 
letting the cutting blades go as close to the rows as is safe, 



56 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

This is easy and quick work. Any strong, half-grown boy 
can go over an acre in a day in this way, and we can 
therefore well afford to thus stir the soil between the rows 
pretty frequently. 

In fact, this is necessary. We have frequent rains thus 
early in the season which pack the soil and result in the 
formation of a crust over it. This must be broken as often 
as it forms, in order to admit air to the roots of the plants, 
and also to form a sort of soil mulch over the surface, 
which is very serviceable in preserving soil moisture should 
a dry spell follow. The rule is, therefore, to start the 
wheel hoe just as soon after a rain as the surface of the 
ground is dry enough to be easily pulverized. Besides this, 
repeat the operation as often as possible in dry spells. I do 
not believe that you can overdo the matter. 

Hand Weeding. 

Next comes hand weeding. This usually involves the 
greatest expense in the production of an onion crop, and 
is the chief trouble we meet in the undertaking. The new 
method, however, requires a great deal less of this expen- 
sive and tedious labor on hands and knees. This is an 
advantage that offsets more than fully the labor required in 
transplanting. 

Half-grown boys are well suited to do the work of hand 
weeding, if you can keep them under strict surveillance 
and steadily at work. Each one is provided with some 
sort of weeding implement, and works on hands and knees 
while straddling his row. Teach them to keep their feet 
nicely between the rows. 

In loose, mucky, or sandy soil the work can be done 
entirely with the fingers, but I should prefer a Lang hand- 
weeder even then. There are quite a number of tools that 
may be used for this purpose. I show some of them in Fig. 



THE WORK THICKENS. 



57 



26. An ordinary iron spoon, shown at a, such as you can buy 
at the nearest hardware store for five cents, does very well. 
If you have a metal-handled table knife, with point broken 
off, bend the blade in a curve and sharpen both sides (see ^), 
and you can use it as a weeder. Or you may take a section 
of an old mowing-machine knife (see c) or a piece of iron 
hoop (see //), and fasten it to a short handle. At e you 
see the Lang weeder, and at / the Hazeltine, either of 
which can be purchased at small cost at any seed store. 
Whatever tool you have, use it to scrape the surface of the 

Fig. 26. 




Weeders. 

ground, with all the tiny weeds or sprouting weed seeds it 
may contain, away from the onion rows. Hilling is not 
required or allowable. Always let the wheel hoe do its 
work just ahead of the we.eders. It will lighten the job. 
In Fig. 27 I show the use of Lang's hand-weeder, and in 
Fig. 28 that of a table knife, fixed as already stated. These 
are my favorite tools for this work. Other growers may 
follow their own preferences. 

If the grower has used seed enough to secure a full stand 
some of the plants will most likely grow pretty thickly in 



58 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



the rows. It is true, as said before, that onions bear con- 
siderable crowding. Yet this should not be overdone. I 
believe in judicious thinning ; and there are often so many 

Fig. 27. • 




Lang's Weedek in Use. 



plants that thinning is absolutely needed to prevent an un- 
reasonably large number of the onions being too small to 
sell well. At the second weeding, therefore, I have plants 



Fig. 28. 




Table Knife as Weeder. 



pulled up where they stand closer together than one to the 
inch of row. Better do this, ahd* secure a more uniform 
and good size of the bulbs. 



THE WORK THICKENS. 



59 



Hand weeding among onions grown by the new method 
is not quite so formidable. The transplanted onions have 
the start of the weeds from the very beginning, and they 
stand so uniformly, and comparatively wide apart, that a 
good share of the weeding can be done in a standing posi- 
tion, and by the use of specially prepared hoes, instead of 
on hands and knees. In Fig. 29 may be seen the kind of 
hoes I use and like. The one shown 2X a\ find most ser- 
viceable in working among the onions in the row. It is 
made by cutting off the sides of the blade of a worn-out 

Fic. 29. 




Hoes for Onion Weeding. 



ordinary hoe, such as may be found on almost any place. 
At b you see another way of making a really good and ser- 
viceable tool out of a useless thing, such as these dull old 
hoes usually prove to be. At c is shown a weeding tool 
made by fastening the blade of a Hazeltine weeder to 
a hoe handle. The hoe, d, is simply a piece of iron hoop 
bent as shown, and fastened to a handle. 

Whatever tools of this kind you may have, use them per- 
sistently enough to keep down all weed growth. As the 
onions are nearing their full size, they may form such a 
mat over the ground that wheel hoes cannot be used any 



60 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

longer. Yet weed growth will not stop. The small weeds 
are not apt to give much trouble at that time, but the 
coarser kinds, and those favored by hot weather, like purs- 
lane, will now try to take possession of the ground. Purs- 
lane in these rich grounds grows rapidly, and may' com- 
pletely hide the soil before you are hardly aware of it. This 
is the time for fighting weeds with hand hoes. Just walk 
through the onions carefully backward and draw the hoe 
along over the ground between the rows, cutting off the 
weeds or pulling them out. Purslane should, if possible, 
be gathered up and taken out of the patch. By all means, 
keep the ground clean. 



1 

I 



\ 



\ 



Rolling Down the Tops. 
I have never seen any good resulting from the practice J 

of breaking down the tops of onions for the sake of hasten- 
ing their ripening. Well-grovvn onions will ripen up all . 
right in due season, and if some specimens, owing to mis- 
management, or for reasons of their- own, are bound to 
make scallions, they will do so, even if you roll down the 
tops. 



VII. 

IRRIGATION AND CULTIVATION. 

AS MEANS OF FIGHTING DROUGHT. 

A SOIL MULCH. — MUCKY COMPOST AND WOOD- ASHES, — SUB-EARTH 
SOAKING. — SURFACE IRRIGATION. — BOX-DITCH. — SUB-IRRIGATION 
BY TILE. — IRRIGATION BY WATER PUMPED INTO TANKS. 

It is a mistake to think that cultivation is merely a 
means of checking or destroying weeds. In reality this is 
only an incidental benefit. We stir the soil chiefly for the 
purpose of (i) helping plant growth by admitting air to 
the soil, thus promoting chemical changes which fit plant 
foods for ready assimilation by plant roots, and (2) pre- 
venting the rapid evaporation of the soil water. Cultiva- 
tion gives us an easy way of providing a soil-mulch through 
which the water does not readily pass upward. Weeds 
are simply a manifestation of Nature's kindness to man. 
They force him to stir the soil when, otherwise, he would be 
apt to neglect it, letting his plants suffer for want of food 
and water, and suffering pecuniary loss himself. I cannot, 
therefore, consider weeds a curse. They do their share of 
good as a reminder and spur to the flagging grower, and 
perhaps as much as they do harm. At least they are a 
necessary evil. "* 

Preventing Injury by Drought. 
In localities with fairly regular rainfall the grower can 
usually succeed in growing good onion crops without arti- 
ficial irrigation, if he plants on retentive soil which rests 
on porous sub-soil, and practices the thorough cultivation 

61 



62 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

recommended in preceding chapter, as means of carrying 
his crop unharmed through the dry spells of longer or 
shorter duration liable to occur in any year. The heavy 
applications of compost, especially if muck (used as absorb- 
ing material) is one of its constituents, and perhaps of wood- 
ashes, also aid in the retention of moisture. 

Means of Irrigation. 

In some localities, however, artificial irrigation is abso- 
lutely required to insure success ; and almost anywhere it 
is a good thing to have as an additional safeguard against 
possible failure. 

Wherever there is a never-failing supply of water — a 
stream, a pond, a canal — near the field and higher than its 
level, or one that can be easily raised to the ground level, 
it will pay the grower well to utilize it for irrigation, even 
if the first expense of plant, piping, etc., should be consider- 
able. In the selection of onion ground I would always 
prefer a piece that could be easily brought under irrigation. 
Soil of a sandy character, sandy loam, or sandy muck is best 
fitted for the purpose. Clay soils are suitable only when 
they contain, and are made porous by, an abundance of 
humus. 

A simple and effective method of irrigation is the one in 
use on Mr. John F. White's place near Morris, N. Y. At 
the foot of a hill, and slightly sloping away from it, is a 
tract of deep, rich, sandy muck. A little brook, flowing 
down the hillside, furnishes a small but never-failing water 
supply. This can be turned into a deep ditch, dug just at 
the foot of the hill on a dead level, and forming the head 
of the lowlands. Another ditch, parallel with the other, 
forms the boundary on the lower side, and the two ditches 
are connected by a number of parallel cross-ditches as 
shown in Fig. 30. All these ditcTies are provided with 



IRRIGATION AND CULTIVATION. 



63 



flood-gates to dam up the water when required. Ordinarily 
these flood-gates, except the one at b, are raised, and the water 
flows along in its natural course unobstructed. But when 
the soil begins to get dry, and shows the need of water, 
the mountain brook is turned into the head ditch dXb, and 
the latter filled to overflowing. This alone will give the 
whole strip next to the head ditch (i 1 1 1), a number of rods 
in width, a pretty good soaking in a comparatively short 

Fig. 30. 




Plan of Field Under Irrigation. 



time. Then by opening the flood-gates at the head of 
the cross-ditches the water is turned into the latter, 
allowed to rise to the top at the next set of flood-gates, 
and by overflow and by soaking in, well distributed over 
another strip parallel with the head ditch (2222). Then 
these flood-gates are again vraised, and the water allowed to 
flow into the next section of the ditches, and so forth, 
until the entire area has been well soaked. Just as soon as 
the surface has again become dry enough for cultivation, 
the ground should at once be stirred by means of the 
wheel-hoe. 

The opportunities and soil conditions are not often so 



64 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



favorable for irrigation as in this case. When the soil 
does not let the water pass through readily, we have to 
employ other methods of distributing it over the surface. 
The simplest way, probably, is to conduct the water to the 
highest part of the patch, and then let it run down a 
slight slope, in little depressions made with a hand-plow at 
regular distances of 6, 8, or more feet apart, according to 
the porosity of the soil. A vacant row must be left for the 
water course. 

The water supply may be brought to the highest part of 
the patch in a kind of box-ditch, as illustrated in Fig. 31. 




Ikkigation from Box-ditch. 



Another good way of distributing the water from a 
higher source of supply is by means of lines of two-inch 
tile laid on a slight slope, ten or twelve inches deep. 
There is no need of providing an outlet, except it be for 
the sake of drainage in case of heavy rains. Place the 
tiles in each line closely together. The water will find its 
way out at the joints, and penetrate the soil on each side 
to a greater or lesser distance according to the porosity of 
the soil. This latter point also determines the question of 
what is the proper width betweefi the lines of tile. In 



IRRIGATION AND CULTIVATION. 



65 



some soils, like sandy loam or muck, they may be ten or 
twelve, or even more, feet apart; in clayey soils it may be 
necessary to place them as near as four or five feet apart. 

Whenever a water supply, such as mentioned, is not at 
command, it may perhaps be obtained by letting a wind- 
mill or steam pump raise it from a pond, stream, or well 
into large tanks, from which it is to be distributed over 
the field by means of hose alone, or by a combination of 
iron pipe and hose, or in other ways that may suggest 
themselves to the intelligent grower. 



Fig. 



32. 




Now a word of warning. With an unlimited amount of 
water available for irrigating purposes there is great danger 
that a good thing will be overdone. Onions are easily 
and often permanently injured by an over-supply of water. 
The latter causes an excessively rank growth and thick 
clumsy tops, which will not permit the bulb to mature and 
cap over well. Do not let xthe water into the patch oftener 
than when absolutely needed, and then only enough to 
moisten, not to soak, the soil. Great caution and the 
exercise of good judgment are required to keep to the 
proper medium. 
5 



VIII. 

ENEMIES OF THE CROP. 
INSECTS AND DISEASES, AND HOW TO FIGHT THEM. 

ONION MAGGOTS. — WHITE GRUB. — WIRE-WORM. — ONION RUST. — ONION 

SMUT. 

I have been growing onions for many years, but I do not 
believe I have ever lost one half of one per cent, of the crop 
by the interference of the onion maggot, which proves so 
destructive to onions in many localities. It was only now 
and then that I found a single solitary maggot. Whether 
this is due to the fact that the maggots which attack the 
onions, cabbage, radish, and similar vegetables, are the 
larvae of one and the same species of fly, which for oviposi- 
tion takes radishes as first choice, cabbages next, and 
onions only when the other plants are not to be had close 
by, and that I invariably plant radishes and cabbages in 
closest proximity to the onion patch, I am unable to say. 
I may state, however, that I cannot discover distinctive 
differences betv/een the maggots or flies which affect the 
onion, radish, and cabbage respectively, and that there are 
always plenty of these unwelcome visitors on my radishes 
and cabbages. Fig. 33 shows the eggs (a), the larva at 
work (/5), and the adult considerably magnified (r). 

Prevention is much better and easier than cure. The 
best thing that can be done is to remove the plantation to 
a new plot, as far avv^ay as possible, each year, or at least 
every other year. It is also recommended to puddle the 
plants, when transplanting in the new way, in a puddle to 
which sulphur has been added, and to sprinkle sulphur 
about the plants after they are set. 

Cy6 



ENEMIES OF THE CROP. 



67 



All affected plants should be removed and burned as 
soon as discovered. ' Caustic lime water, especially if 
made with liquid manure instead of clear water, seems to 
be a safe remedy, but it will require too large a quantity to 
be of much practical usefulness on an extensive scale. 
Slake a peck of fresh lime in one hundred gallons of 
liquid, let settle, draw off, leaving the settlings undisturbed, 

Fig. 33. 




Onion Maggot. 



and pour the liquid about the plants freely enough so that 
it will soak down to the place where the maggot is feeding. 
Every larva touched by this lime water will die. Instead 
of this remedy we can use solutions of muriate of potash, 
one tablespoonful to the gallon of water, or of kainit, two 
tablespoon fuls to the gallon. Plants once eaten into 
usually rot and die, and for this reason the remedy is 
not as satisfactory as might be desired. H. A. March 
of Washington sprinkles crude sulphur, which smells very 
strong, over his cauliflower plants, and says it seems to 



68 OyiONS FOR PROFIT. 

drive the fly away. This simple precaution might be tried 
also in the onion patch. If it drives the fly away from 
the one crop, it will undoubtedly do the same service to 
the other. 

At various times I have observed white grubs, as' also 
wire-worms, etc., feeding at the roots of the onion plants 
when approaching maturity. I think they must do con- 
siderable damage by checking growth, and thus decreasing 
the yield. Try to get ground that is free from these pests, 
or to get rid of them by fall plowing. Earth-worms, 
wherever troublesome, may be disposed of by free applica- 
tions of lime or lime water as used for the maggot. 
Potash salts will probably have a good effect in ridding the 
soil of earth-worms, etc., also. 

There may be other insect enemies, mostly very minute 
— lice, thrips, or mites ; at least I have heard many com- 
plaints about them, without ever being able to find any 
such insects on my onions. Rotation, as for the onion 
maggot, is probably the surest means of prevention. I 
can suggest no cure. 

Diseases. 

Among fungous diseases affecting the crop we have 
two, the onion rust {Peronospera Schleideniafia, linger), 
and the smut {Urocystis cepulce. Frost). The former 
affects the leaves when the onion is beginning to bottom, 
or later, making them turn yellow, and ending in their 
decay. It checks the further growth of the bulb. Pull 
the crop when seriously affected ; cure the bulbs thoroughly, 
and put them on the market at once. As this can be 
done quite early in the season, good prices are often 
obtained. 

I have tried spraying with various fungicides, but with- 
out being able to check the progress of the disease after it 



ENEMIES OF THE CROP. 69 

had once made its appearance. Changing the location of 
the patch to a new plot is probably the safest plan of 
fighting the rust. By practicing the '^ new onion culture," 
however, we have it in our power to prevent this disease 
altogether, or at least a serious attack by it. The earlier 
varieties, White Victoria, Yellow Dutch, and other 
ordinary standard sorts reach their full size and maturity 
long before the advent of the rust, and even the later 
foreign onions usually are too far advanced to be much 
harmed by it. 

The smut, according to Prof. Bailey, attacks the first 
leaf or leaves of seedling onions, producing dark, irreg- 
ular spots, and killing or weakening the plants. Drill a 
mixture of sulphur and lime, equal parts, into the ground 
with the seed ; about an ounce of the mixture to 50 feet 
of drill, as a preventive. 



IX. 

THE HARVEST. 
GATHERING AND TAKING CARE OF THE CROP. 

PULLING IN TIME. — CURING OUTDOORS. — KEEP DRY. — CURING ON BARN 
FLOOR OR UNDER SHEDS. — ONION CURING SHED. 

When the tops turn yellow and begin to die, the crop is 
ready to be harvested. Be prompt. It is usually safer to 
pull the onions a few days too early, than too late. Do not 
wait until every onion in the patch is dead and all the 
tops have died down. Onions always ripen up unevenly, 
and many specimens, at the proper time of harvesting, will 
be quite green. This should give the grower no concern. 
If the bulb is good, the green top will soon dry and 
dwindle away. The danger lies in the tendency of the 
ripe bulbs to commence a second growth, if left too long 
in the ground, especially in a wet season. The onion 
should be kept perfectly dormant. New growth soon spoils 
it. One of the greatest advantages of the ''new onion 
culture" is the early ripening of the crop, which brings the 
time of harvesting and curing into midsummer or early fall, 
when warm, dry days favor the proper curing. To get a 
part of the crop into an extra early and willing market, we 
may even begin pulling the onions before they are fully 
matured. Sometimes we can make more money thereby 
than by waiting for more growth and maturity. 

Pulling the Crop. 
The work itself offers no difficu^lties^ The smallest boys 
may be employed in " pulling " the crop. It is quick work, 

70 



TIJE HARVEST. 71 

too, especially when the onions were grown on the new 
plan, and are all uniformly large and regular. Each boy 
(or growai person) may take three or four rows, pulling the 
onions up by taking hold of each bulb itself, pushing or 
pulling it over (not by the top unless that happens to be 
large and strong), and then leaving all the onions pretty 
much in a windrow along one side. 

Here they are left until fully cured, which in warm and 
dry weather may require a week's time or longer. If wanted 
for immediate use, or to meet a present lively demand at 
.extra prices, there would be no need of waiting for them 
to cure perfectly. Each grower must be guided by circum- 
stances, and his own good judgment in this matter. Under 
ordinary atmospheric conditions it is perfectly safe to cure 
the onions outdoors. It is the cheapest and least laborious 
method. The short rains which we are liable to have occa- 
sionally, during summer and early autumn, will do no 
harm. The bulbs soon dry again. If there should be a 
long rainy spell, you may turn the onions occasionally, 
either by hand, or better, with a wooden rake or fork. 

Gathering for Storage. 

Be sure that the onions are perfectly dry on the outside, 
when you gather them for storage. Pick them up into 
bushel crates or baskets, and spread them upon the 
barn floor or a dry loft. Do not let them stand for days 
together in barrels, or even in crates and baskets. The 
bulbs may appear entirely dry, and yet they will sweat and 
sprout, causing loss and trouble to the grower. If well 
cured and dry, you can put them upon a dry, airy floor a 
foot or more deep without danger. But the sooner you 
go at them, and twist or cut off the remnants of top and 
root, the better it will be. Then you are safe in storing 
the onions in slatted crates or ventilated barrels on the 
l)arn floor or under a dry shed. 



72 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



People who grow onions by acres will need considerable 
storage room, and may find it necessary to put up special 
curing sheds or cribs. These can be arranged somewhat 
on the plan of the curing shed shown in Fig. 34. 

This is built like a double corn- crib. Ordinary rough 
posts, firmly set into the ground, may serve as frame. 
Divide the storage rooms on each side into shelves, so that 
you can get the largest possible quantity spread out in 
layers not over twelve or eighteen inches deep, with plenty 
of air circulating through and between the layers. There 

Fig. 34. 




Onion Curing Shed. 



should be a driveway clear through the centre of the shed 
lengthwise. This will facilitate unloading, and loading 
again when required. 

To be on the safe side, the crop should be gathered and 
housed just as soon as it is in proper condition. Not a day 
should be lost after the bulbs are well cured and dry. 
When it gets to be late in the season, and a long wet spell 
is threatening, we had better house the crop anyway, and 
depend on its curing in thin layers on a dry barn or shed 
floor. 



X. 

THE REWARD; 

MARKETING AND STORING. 

THE EARLY MARKET.— VENTILATED BARRELS. — HOME-MADE ONION 
SORTER. — ONION CRATES. — DOMESTIC SPANISH ONIONS. — WINTER- 
ING ONIONS FOR SPRING SALE. — STORAGE HOUSES. — PITS. — ESTI- 
MATES OF COST AND PROFIT. 

My own inflexible rule is to sell the crop, after it is ready, 
at the first opportunity I have to get a fair price for it. 
In fact I aim to have it early, in order to sell it early. I 
find less competition, and therefore better prices, in market 
during August than I do during September, and less com- 
petition with better prices during September than during 
October or November. Besides the crop is a perishable 
one, and there is constant shrinkage, waste, and loss. 
The sooner you are rid of it and have the money for it 
safely in your pockets, the sooner you are relieved of the 
troublesome task of caring for a perishable article, and the 
better you are off. This advice is meant especially for the 
less experienced onion grower. 

In the great onion districts of the east the crop is a 
staple article, and sells readily to regular wholesale buyers 
in the same way as potatoes are being sold in the great 
potato districts — by the car load. Buyers always go to the 
centres of production, and there we usually find the best, 
because most willing and ready market. 

Local and General Markets. 

The isolated grower away from these centres, no matter 
whether he grows on a large scale or a small one, has to 

73 



74 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



hunt up buyers for his onion crop. In the first place he 
should try to satisfy the local demand. Inferior, imper- 
fectly ripened, or thick-necked bulbs may often be disposed 
of to the neighbors for immediate use at half price or 
less. Get something for them ; they are of no use otherwise. 
I have never found any difficulty in selling my earliest 
onions at a fair price, no matter in what packages they were 
put up. Sometimes I have sold them from the wagon to 
grocerymen in Niagara Falls ; ordinarily I ship to Buffalo. 
A few extra-early white onions I often ship in ten-quart 

Fig. 35. 




Ventilated Barrel. 



or half-bushel (peach) baskets. These baskets are cheap, 
and make a handy and popular package. Ordinary stand- 
ard onions are shipped in barrels. The ventilated barrels, 
of various styles, such as illustrated in Fig. 35 and com- 
monly used for shipping vegetables, would be excellent for 
shipping onions. Of course, we cannot afford to buy 
new barrels for this purpose. I get my supply of barrels 
from my grocers, who sell their old cracker and sugar 
barrels at ten cents apiece. In place of the regular head 
I use a piece of old canvas. 

Uniformity of size greatly improves a lot of onions, 



THE REWARD. 



75 



and I believe that careful sorting will pay well. Each size 
or grade should be put in a package by itself. A device 
for sorting, such as is illustrated in Fig. '^^6, is easily made 
out of a few scantlings, slats, and boards. The picture 
makes the arrangement plain enough, and further descrip- 
tion will not be needed. 

Fig. 36. 




Home-Made Onion Sorter. 

The larger sizes of the Prizetaker onion I have for 
several seasons put up and marketed in the manner shown 
in Fig. 37. The crate is patterned after the crate in 
which the Spanish and Bermuda onions are imported to 
our markets. The slats are 19^ inches long, and the end 
pieces 19^ by 7 inches. The crate holds plump three 
pecks. In the earlier part of the season they have sold 
well at from ^i.oo to ^1.25 each. These crates can 
be had, in the flat, at 12 to 15 cents apiece. 

The Spanish Onion in Market. 

In some local markets, or among rural consumers, these 
fine, large bulbs sell well in smaller quantities, especially 



76 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



after people become acquainted with their superior quality 
and the absence of excessively strong flavor. In other 
markets the sale is slow, as buyers sometimes seem to be 
afraid of these large bulbs, and to prefer for a sweet onion 
the imported ones, at a much higher figure. In Veality 
there is little or no difference as regards flavor between 
the Prizetaker and the imported Spanish, and as we can 
grow the former, by the " New Onion Culture," to as large 

Fig. 37. 




Onions Crated for Market. 



size as the imported bulb, and at the rate of 1000 to 2000 
bushels per acre, we should try to make American onion 
consumers learn the true value of this ''Domestic Span- 
ish" onion, and induce them to lay prejudice aside and 
use the domestic bulb in place of the imported article. 

It has been proposed to use the designation '■'■ Domestic 
Spanish" uniformly as a kind of trade-mark, and thus label 



THE REWARD. 77 

all crates containing Prizetaker onions. Whether this will 
have practical results, and insure the grower a financial suc- 
cess, the future alone can tell. People are always slow to 
drop fixed notions and to change tastes once acquired. 
But it is worth the trial. Certainly such fine, large onions 
as well-grown Prizetakers are, ought to find favor with the 
consumer, and sell well. 

Crating Onions. 
The crate, as shown, makes a light, airy package, well 
calculated to keep onions dry and sound. Its cost alone is 
against it. For the first early crop, however, which can be 
expected to bring a good price, and which will sell best in 
small packages, crates may be employed to good advantage. 
They might be made one-third larger, and '' warranted to 
hold one bushel." 

Feeling the Pulse of the Market. 

In selling a large crop, the methods of the good business 
man should be adopted. The supply, and consequently the 
prices, in various parts of the country are by no means 
uniform. Onions may be plentiful in New York, or Phila- 
delphia, or Buffalo, and scarce in St. Louis, or Chicago, or 
Columbus. It will pay the grower who has carloads of 
onions to dispose of, to be informed about the condition 
of the various markets which he might find available. 
.Direct sales can often be made to houses in one or the 
other of the larger^cities. Get the addresses of one or 
more good commission merchants in all of the larger cities 
within reasonable distance from you, and thus be in the 
situation to feel the pulse of the market. 

Winter Storage. 
Prices usually rule highest, and often reach almost fancy 
figures, in spring. Year after year 1 have known white onions 



78 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

to sell for from ^6 to ^lo a barrel in the New York markets 
in March and April. Whoever has proper facilities for 
wintering onions, and thoroughly understands how to carry 
them safely through until spring, can do so with a fair pros- 
pect of largely increased returns from his crop. Of course, 
there is in this an element of speculation, and consequently 
some risk for even the expert, and danger for the novice. 

The task, however, does not offer great difficulties. The 
first thing to do is to sort the onions over carefully, and to 
select for winter storage none but sound, well-ripened bulbs. 
They should be perfectly ''capped over," and entirely 
dormant both at root and top. If there is the least trace 
of growth, a green point at the heart, a rudiment of live 
root — reject that onion. 

Next be sure that every onion to be wintered over is 
dust-dry on the outside. Such bulbs may be stored in 
layers, or, better, in slatted bushel boxes, in a cool, dry 
room, where safe from freezing, and they are pretty sure to 
keep well until spring. 

A grower on the Canadian side of the Niagara River, 
who annually winters over thousands of bushels, has 
arranged part of a large barn as an onion storage-room. 
This is almost frost-proof in the coldest weather. All the 
walls have a dead air space, with building paper tacked on 
in the inside of each boarding that forms the hollow space. 
There are double windows at each end, which are kept con- 
stantly open except in the coldest weather. For storage- 
rooms above ground, in cold localities, however, the walls 
may be made like the one shown in Fig. 37. Set two by 
four joists, of the desired height, two feet apart upon the 
foundation walls. Line up each side of the joists with good 
matched boards, and paper the same with building paper. 
This will leave a dead air space four inches wide in the 
center of the wall. On each side of this nail ordinary 



THE REWARD. 



79 



rough boards or planks, and cover them with siding on the 
outside, but with matched boards on the inside, filling the 
six-inch spaces with sawdust slightly packed. Walls thus 
built are recommended by Mr. J. Heagerty, of this State, 
for a fruit storage-room. For onion storage the space may 
be considerably narrower ; but a room thus enclosed, and 
with doors and windows made tight, will be as near frost- 
proof as can be desired. 

Onions must not be stored in these rooms in bulk, but in 
layers on shelves, or in slatted bushel-boxes or crates, filled 




Fig. 38. 

!;^ building paper- 

7- 



k, SPACE 

I 



m&biM 



wm 




Section of Wall of Storage-room. 



only to within a few inches of the top, so that there will be 
a free circulation of -air all around, under, and above each 
box, when they are set one above the other. 



Wintering in Pits. 
Onions can also be wintered in pits, in same way as pota- 
toes, roots, or apples are pitted for winter keeping. Be sure 



80 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



that the spot selected for the pit is well drained. If water 
is allowed to get inside, either from the top or bottom, it 
will surely spoil the onions. Have them dry, and place 
them upon a dry foundation in a long, conical heap. Cover 
with clean straw ; then with a layer of earth and a rbofing 




Onions in Pit. 



of boards. A wisp of straw reaching from the onions 
through the top outside will provide the needed ventilation. 
Fig. 39 will give an idea of the whole arrangement. Let 

FxG. 40. 




Onions in Pit. 



the onions freeze ; it is an advantage rather than an injury. 
Consequently, there is no need of covering them with as 
deep layers of straw and earth, as would be necessary in pit- 
ting potatoes, or even mangels and qarrots. 



THE REWARD, 81 

Perhaps it would do as well, if not better, to reverse the 
order of things somewhat and arrange the covering as 
shown in Fig. 40, namely, first a layer of straw, then a 
board resting on rafters, and finally a coat of earth well 
patted down. 

Another very simple and convenient way is to put them 
in a dry place, say a barn gr shed floor, upon a layer of 
straw or hay, and let them freeze. Then cover with a two- 
feet layer of the same material, or with mats and blankets, 
and leave them untouched until they have thawed out again 
in spring. The onions must not be put nearer than about 
two feet from the wall, and the space between them and the 
latter should be filled w^th litter. The freezing method is 
pretty safe in uniformly cold winters, but a little risky in 
warm, open winters with frequent violent changes of tem- 
perature. Never handle bulbs when frozen, and always 
allow them to thaw out gradually. 

T?iE Profits. 

Now for an estimate of cost of the crop and the profits 
that are in it. In the very nature of things you will ex- 
pect this estimate to be a somewhat rough one. The con- 
ditions, in regard to cost of labor, of manure, of land, as 
well as the demand for the crop and the prices that can be 
obtained for it, vary so greatly in different localities and 
seasons that I can give no figures which would be a safe 
guide everywhere. - 

The following I submit as a rather conservative estimate. 
I do not desire to paint the business of growing '•' onions 
for profit " in unduly rosy colors. The yield (600 bushels) 
is no more than a good grower should produce under fairly 
favorable conditions : — 



82 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

I.— ESTIMATE OF COST, AND RETURNS FROM THE OED 

METHOD. 

EXPENSES OF CROP PER ACRE. 

Rent of land, ... ^ 6 oo 

Manure, 3 carloads, at ^16, 48 co 

Fertilizers, 20 00 

Hauling, applying manure, 12 00 

Plowing and harrowing, 3 00 

Seed, 6 lbs. at ^2.25, 13 50 

Sowing, .... I 00 

Cultivation and weeding, first time, 15 00 

" " " second " 10 00 

« " " third " 5 00 

Pulling crop, 3 00 

Gathering, hauling, barreling, 35 ^o 

Barrels, or packages, 20 00 

Total, ^191 50 

RECEIPTS. 

By 600 bushels of onions, at 60 cents, $ 360 00 

Deducting expenses, 191 5^ 

Net profit, . ,' , ^168 50 

If reality corresponds with this estimate, the grower is 
doing pretty well. Even if the i)rice obtained for the crop 
should be only fifty cents a bushel, the net profits, with 
^300 realized from the crop, would still be about $110 after 
all outlays and all labor at fair rates~are paid for. 

The average crop, it is true, is far below 600 bushels; 
but we are not aiming for average crops. Our liberality in 
applying manures, our thoroughness in selecting and pre- 
paring just the right soil conditions, our good manage- 
ment generally, should count for something. The average 
crop can and should by these means be doubled or trebled. 
A yield of 600 bushels of sound onions to the acre is the 
very least that the wide-awake^ grower can expect under 



THE REWARD, 83 

such selected favorable conditions. Indeed, the chances 
are that the yield will go above the figure named, 800 
bushels being within easy reach, and 1000 bushels by no 
means beyond possibility. Every one can easily make his 
own calculations as to the profits resulting from such a crop. 

1 1. -ESTIMATE OF COST AND PROFITS FROM THE NEW 

METHOD. 

EXPENSES OF CROP PER ACRE. 

Rent of land, $ 6 00 

Manure, 3 carloads, at ;^i6, 48 00 

Fertilizers, 25 00 

Hauling and applying manure, 12 00 

Plowing and harrowing, 3 00 

Marking, i 00 

Raising 180,000 plants, 30 00 

Seed, 7 00 

Transplanting, 45 *^*^ 

Cultivation and weeding, 20 00 

Pulling crop, 3 00 

Gathering, hauling, packing, 35 ^^ 

Barrels and crates, 60 00 

Total, ^295 GO 

RECEIPTS. 

By 1000 bushels, at $1.00, less freight, commission, etc., . ^800 00 
Deducting the expenses with 295 00 

Net profits, $505 00 

This is in favorable contrast with the results obtained by 
the old method. The total expenses per acre are greater — 
in fact, they must increase with the increase in yield. But 
for reasons already stated, we usually can sell the crop at a 
higher price per bushel than we could get for onions raised 
in the old fashion. This makes a vast difference in the net 
profits. 

I can see nothing to prevent the grower, who has used 



84 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

good judgment in the selection of favorable conditions for 
his undertaking, to raise looo bushels per acre on this new 
plan. It takes 180,000 plants per acre. The average 
weight per bulb should be not less than four ounces, if you 
grow some good strain of the Yellow Dutch, and exceed 
eight ounces if you grow the Prizetaker. 
^ I have had many specimens of the latter variety which 
tipped the scales at twenty-four ounces, and whole rows 
with every bulb weighing no less than one pound. The 
180,000 Prizetaker onions on one acre, each weighing only 
one-half of a pound, would give 90,000 pounds, or from 
1400 to 1500 bushels. These, if sold at even a moderate 
price, leave a big margin of profit for the grower. 

All these calculations and estimates are based upon my 
own surroundings and local conditions. Each grower must 
modify them according to his particular surroundings and 
conditions and ruling prices. Good management and 
good judgment, especially in respect to selection of most 
favorable conditions, cannot fail to 'lead to a satisfactory 
outcome. 



XI. 



SIDE ISSUES. 

GROWING PICKLING ONIONS, ONION SETS, BUNCHING 

ONIONS, ETC. 

THE BARLETTA. — GROWING THE CROP. — ONION SET HARVESTERS. — ■ 
ONION SET CLEANER. -PROFITS IN PICKLING ONIONS. — GROWING 
SETS. — WINTERING SETS. — GROWING LUNCHING ONIONS.- — GREEN 
ONIONS FROM BARLETTA SEEDLINGS. — EGYPTIAN WINTER ONIONS. 

Since the introduction of the Barletta (Adriatic Bar- 
letta) onion, a few years ago, I have taken quite a fancy to 
growing pickling onions. 

Does it pay? 

It pays — and pays well. It gives us a chance to utilize 
the labor of quite young boys with good profit. It allows 
of double cropping, which is not practical to any great 
extent in growing ordinary onions by the old method. It 
gives us a product that meets with ready sale, and brings 
in ready money long before we can get cash returns from 
the regular onion crop. 

The New Queen, yet quite generally grown as a pickling 
onion, has always given fiiirly satisfactory results. It is a 
nice, small, white variety, somewhat flat in shape, and 
early enough to catch the demand for pickling onions. 
Many specimens, however, unless much crowded, are apt 
to grow larger than desirable. 

The Barletta is just the thing in size. It is handsome, 
round, of pearly whiteness, and altogether the pickling 
OYiiQTv par excellence. Its advent has made the production 
of these onions a pleasure. If well-grown, well-cured, and 
well-sorted, they cannot help tempting even an unwilling 

85 



86 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



buyer, but especially the housewife in need of pickling 
material. The Barletta sells on sight. 

While these pickling onions will grow on any kind of soil 
suitable for other onions, I would not plant them on those 
of a clayey character under any circumstances. Why ? 
Labor, in the production of this crop, is a most important 
factor. One of our first aims must be to make use of every 
means within our reach that may serve to avoid all pre- 




The Barletta Onion. 



ventable waste in this large item of expense. Up to the 
time of harvesting, all seems easy and plain sailing. Then 
comes the real work, that of gathering and cleaning the 
crop. If the soil is sandy, or otherwise loose and crumbly, 
our youngsters will find the task now before them light and 
pleasant, but long and wearisome if the small bulbs have 
to be dug out of stiff clay, and separated from large and 
small lumps of earth by hand. 

In the first place, and as a pr^me condition of financial 
success, we must understand that the only choice of soil 



SIDE ISSUES. 87 

left to us is between sandy loam, sandy muck, and sand, all 
of which must be free from rubbish, gravel, large stones, 
and lumps. In other words, any soil that when fairly dry 
and unfrozen will at any season readily pass through an 
ordinary coal-ash sifter without leaving a residue, is suit- 
able for growing pickling onions. 

The soil should be well enriched in somewhat the same 
fashion as minutely described for growing ordinary onions, 
although there is no need of being quite so liberal in 
manure applications. If the land is already quite rich 
and well filled with organic matter, we might safely dis- 
pense with organic manures, and put our reliance solely on 
applications of commercial fertilizers, ashes, dried blood, 
etc. Land that is not rich nor well supplied with organic 
matter (humus) should have a good coat of compost. 
Absence of weed seeds, both in the soil and compost, is 
also an important point. 

- In regard to the preparation of the soil I have nothing 
to add to the instructions already given in chapter IV. For 
sowing the seed, at the rate of about thirty pounds per acre, 
use the seed drill. Crowd the rows pretty closely together. 
There is no need of having them wider than ten inches 
apart. But for the greater ease of cultivation secured by a 
greater distance, I would put only six inches between the 
rows. An ounce of fresh seed is enough to plant one hun- 
dred feet of row or a little over. I usually set the drill to 
sow about one-half this quantity, and then go twice in 
each row. I do thrs for the purpose of spreading the seeds 
in a wide row, rather than crowding them together in a 
single narrow line ; yet I confess that I am not sure whether 
this is of any material benefit or not. Although the Bar- 
letta crop is made in three months' time or less, it is always 
advisable to put the seed into the ground at the North as 
soon in spring as soil and weather will permit. 



88 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

With the advantage which we secure to the onion plants 
over weed growth by early sowing, and by a crowding 
which leaves little room for weeds to start later, the task of 
hand weeding will not be formidable. The wheel hoe should 
be brought early and promptly into use, and the weeds in the 
rows pulled up by hand whenever and as often as required 
until the crop is well on its way toward maturity. 

When the majority of the tops have died down, which 
here is usually at the beginning of Jul}', the time for har- 
vesting the crop has come. If the area is small, pulling by 
hand may answer, and very small boys even can be em- 
ployed to do this work satisfactorily. A better and quicker 
way, however, is to run a common, good-sized garden 
trowel under the onions, lengthwise of the row, lifting up 
trowelful after trowelful, and throwing them into a sieve 
with meshes just small enough to hold the smallest of the 
bulbs. An ordinary coal-ash sifter is good enough. Sift 
out the sand and dirt, then em})ty the cleaned onions into 
baskets or boxes, and strew thinly on rf dry floor to cure. 

If the grower prefers to cure the crop outdoors, which, 
at that season of hot and dry weather, is a perfectly safe 
proceeding, the bulbs should be dug up in the simplest and 
most convenient manner, and left right on the ground until 
the tops and roots have completely dried away. We ordi- 
narily have used our narrow-bladed, home-made onion hoes 
for digging out the bulbs. The blade should be inserted 
and drawn along in the row just under the bulbs. The 
Planet Jr. wheel hoe is provided with an attachment — the 
onion-set harvester, here illustrated (Fig. 42) — which does 
the work with neatness and dispatch. Any grower of ordi- 
nary intelligence and mechanical skill, however, can easily 
construct a serviceable tool for harvesting pickling onions 
and onion sets from a set of old cultivator wheels, a few 
pieces of board, and a piece of an old saw-blade. The illus- 



SIDE ISSUES. 



89 



tration, Fig. 43, will give some idea of the appearance of 
the tool. 



Fig. 42. 




Onion-Set Harvester, Planet Jk. 



Fig. 43- 




srllhM. ^f^^''^ 



IIoMK-MADE Device for Harvesting Onion Sets and Pickling Onions. 

Leave the bulbs on the ground until they are perfectly 
cured, and let them be gathered up when not a particle of 



90 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



moisture is on them. They may then be stored — not in 
boxes, baskets, crates, or barrels, but spread out thinly on 
a dry floor or on airy shelves, then cleaned and prepared 
for market at leisure. 

Children can do the job of cleaning the bulbs quite' well. 
By rolling and rubbing the dry bulbs about in sieves, or in 
a drum made for the purpose (such as illustrated in Fig. 
44), they are easily separated from tops and roots. Finally, 

Fig. 44. 




Sieve Drum for Cleaning Onion Sets and Pickling Onions. 

run them once or twice through a fanning-mill to free them 
from dried skins, tops, and other light rubbish. 

When preparing them for market, the largest bulbs should 
be sorted out, and each grade put up by itself. Uniformity 
in size adds greatly to the attractiveness of the lot and per- 
haps to its money value. The demand in our markets 
usually begins with September and lasts into October. 
Gardeners who sell vegetables to consumers on a regular 
route from the wagon will find that Barletta onions " take 
well" in early autumn, and retidily,sell at from 10 to 15 
cents per quart. 



SIDE ISSUES. 91 

A small town, of course, is soon overstocked. I usually 
ship my crop to Buffalo. I put them into ten-quart (peach) 
baskets, lining the latter inside with paper, to prevent 
small onions from working out through the cracks. A cover 
of cheese cloth or stiff paper is fastened over the top. My 
commission merchants manage to get 75 cents to ^i.oo per 
basket, so that the average returns usually amount to about 
80 cents per basket. 

What is the yield ? 

I have no difficulty to raise at the rate of 600 to 800 
baskets per acre, and the possibilities are probably far above 
this amount. On the basis of a 600-basket yield, we have 
the following 

ESTIMATE OF COST AND RETURNS. 

EXPENSES OF CROP PER ACRE. 

_ Rent of land, $ 600 

Manure and fertilizers, 40 00 

Hauling and applying manures, lo 00 

Plowing and harrowing, 3 00 

Seed, 30 lbs., at ^2.25, 67 50 

Sowing, I 50 

Cultivating and weeding, 25 00 

Harvesting, 3 00 

Gathering and cleaning, 48 50 

Baskets, 600, at 3 cents, 18 00 

Total ^222 50 

RECEIPTS. 

By 600 baskets, at 80 cents, $480 00 

Deducting expenses 222 50 

Net profit, ^257 50 

Tempting as this outcome may appear, I cannot advise 
any one to attempt growing pickling onions thus largely 
until after repeated trials on a gradually increased scale. 



92 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

Thorough work in the matter of curing pickling onions, 
and onion sets as well, cannot be urged too strongly. If 
the weather is not favorable for our purpose, a kiln or dry- 
house, if available, may be utilized to best advantage. 
High heat is not required, nor wanted. 

Growing Onion Sets. 

Onion sets are also a profitable crop, but their successful 
management requires rather more skill and experience than 
that of pickling onions. Perhaps it is not more difficult 
to produce the one than the other ; but the pickling onions 
are disposed of in the fall, while the sets have to be win- 
tered over. The land should be of the same general char- 
acter as needed for pickling onions, but not more than of 
medium fertility. Yellow and White sets are in best 
demand. Select Yellow Dutch and Silverskin or Pearl 
(Extra Early Pearl, American Pearl), respectively, and, if 
you want red sets. Early Red. Prepare the soil, and sow 
seed as directed for pickling onions, ilsing from 40 to 60 
pounds of seed per acre. Use the wheel hoe promptly, 
and keep the patch scrupulously clean of w^eeds. When the 
tops are partially dry, shear them off, or cut them off with 
a sickle ; then harvest them in the same manner as you 
would pickling onions. All bulbs that will not readily pass 
through a sieve with ^-inch meshes are too large for sets, 
and should be used for pickling, or in other ways. 

Sets not perfectly capped over will not keep well. They 
should be dead ripe in August or September. ''A good 
set is a perfectly-formed onion in miniature, a round, plump, 
little onion with the top all withered up to nothing." 
Gather them on a hot day while perfectly dry, and at once 
clean them by running through a fanning mill. Spread 
them out thinly to dry, and keep them dry until winter 
sets in. Then store them, in baskets, or on shelves, in a 



SIDE ISSUES. 93 

cool, dry room, or freeze them as advised for wintering 
ordinary onions. Never handle them while yet partially 
frozen, nor keep them long in bulk after cold weather is 
past. 

Bunching Onions. 

Bunching onions form one of the most important crops 
of the market gardener, and about the earliest outdoor 
crop of the season to bring in money. In all except the 
extreme northern States, I believe sets could be safely 
planted late in the fall, rather than in the spring, as now 
generally practiced. I have thus planted sets of the Early 
Pearl, and they wintered well without protection, and made 
good bulbs for bunching. In our trying winters, however, 
it may be safer to cover the patch lightly with marsh hay 
or other litter, or defer planting until early spring. Place 
the sets two inches apart and about as deep, into rows, 
v/hich may be from eight to twelve inches apart. The soil 
should be a rich, mellow garden loam. Begin pulling and 
bunching the green onions when about half grown, and 
market them as fast as they are wanted. At first, take 
twelve plants for a bunch, reducing this number gradually 
as the bulbs grow larger, and until five or six constitute a 
bunch. 

Sometimes it pays well to grow bunching onions in the 
green or forcing house. Of course the sets should be 
planted quite close, say two by four inches, in order to 
fully occupy the space. In February and March they will 
bring a good price. For both glass and outdoor culture, 
seedling plants of the Barletta, started early under glass, 
may be used in place of sets. Of course the onions will 
be small, but, as on account of the extreme earliness of the 
variety they can be produced before other bunching onions 
come into market, they seem to bring the money. 



94 ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 

Then there is the winter or Egyptian Tree onion. Per- 
sonally I do not consider it worth much. It does not pro- 
duce bulbs in the ground, but only thick stalks like the leek 
or a scallion onion, and propagates itself both by division, 
and by top sets. The plant is of ironclad hardiness* and 
grows luxuriantly whenever the ground is not frozen. 
Here we can pull and bunch them in April and May, 
when other green onions are conspicuous by their absence, 
and for this reason they often sell well, and at a good price, 
notwithstanding the fact that they do not possess the true 
onion flavor. 



XII. 

ODDS AND ENDS. 

ONION SEED RAISING.— WEIGHTS PER BUSHEL.— 
HISTORY AND VARIETIES. 

To produce onion seed, first grow the onions, and select 
perfect, well ripened bulbs for wintering over in a cool, 
dry, airy room. Select moderately rich soil ; plow and 
harrow it well in early spring ; then open furrows six inches 
deep, and not less than three feet apart. In these set the 
onions four or five inches apart, and cover with the foot, 
plow, or a hoe. Where the winters are not excessively 
severe, the planting may also be done in August, in the 
same manner as here described. The onions will make a 
strong growth before winter, and come out all right in the 
spring without protection of any kind/ 

The great hollow seed stalks are quite liable to be 
broken over and seriously damaged by heavy winds when 
the ripening seeds make them top-heavy. If support is 
given to the plants by little stakes, or by wires or twine 
stretched on both sides of each row, much loss will be 
prevented. 

The seed ripens quite unevenly. Each pod must be cut 
at the proper stage of ripeness, as indicated by the yel- 
lowish color of the upper part of the stalk and the seed 
pods. Continue cutting at intervals until all pods are 
gathered. Spread them thinly in a dry loft, and when 
thoroughly dry thresh them with the flail, and clean the 
seed by running it repeatedly through a fanning-mill. 

95 



96 



ONIONS FOR rROFIT. 



Then comes the washing. Place a quantity into a tub or 
barrel of water, stir thoroughly for a few minutes, then 
gently pour the water off, together with all the pods and 
light seeds floating on top, leaving the heavy seed in the 
bottom. This washing maybe repeated once or twice, and 
the seed should at once be spread out thinly on sheets or 
boards to dry, in the sun or a dry, warm room. Be sure 
that it is thoroughly dry before being stored in bulk. 



Weight of Onions. 

I am frequently asked about the legal weight of a bushel 
of onions. This is not easily answered, simply because 
some States, as New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, etc., 
have not thought it worth while to establish a legal weight 
for onions, while other States have seemed to entertain 
somewhat differing ideas as to what weight it properly 
should have. The following is the weight recognized as 
legal by the States named : — * 



Pounds. 

Arkansas, 57 

California, 

Colorado, 57 

Connecticut, 5° 

Delaware, 

Ceorgia, 57 

Illinois, 57 

Indiana, 48 

Idaho, 

Iowa, 57 

Kansas, 57 

Kentucky, 57 

Louisiana, 

Maine, 52 

Maryland, . 56 

Massachusetts, 52 

Michigan, 54 

Minnesota, 

Missouri, 57 

Montana, 



Pounds. 

Nebraska, 57 

Nevada, 

New Hampshire, .... 

New Jersey, 57 

New York, 

North Carolina, 

North Dakota, 

Ohio, 50 

Oregon, 

Penn.sylvania, 

Rhode Island, 52 

South Dakota, 

Tennessee, 56 

Texas, ' . 57 

Vermont, 52 

Virginia, . _ 57 

West Virginia, 

Wisconsin, 5^ 

Washiftgton, 

Wyoming, 



ODDS AND ENDS. 97 

History. 

Little enough is to be said about the early history of the 
onion, although the fragrant bulb has been known and 
cultivated as an article of food from olden times. Prob- 
ably the plant came originally from the East. It is men- 
tioned in the Scriptures as one of the things for which the 
Israelites longed when in the w^ilderness. These people 
seemed to have become quite fond of the "leeks, onions, 
and garlics " of Egypt, and their love for these vegetables 
is almost proverbial to this day. Herodotus, long before 
the Christian era, tells of an inscription on the great 
pyramid stating that a certain sum (1600 talents) had been 
paid for'the onions, radishes, and garlic consumed by the 
workmen during the erection of that massive, awkward, 
but famous, stone heap. 

The present production of the onion in the United 
States has reached enormous proportions, and yet hundreds 
of thousands of bushels are annually imported. These 
come mostly from Bermuda (the old crop) during January, 
from Cuba (new crop) during the same month ; from 
France and Spain, during February and March. It seems 
to me that California and some of our southern States can 
grow just as good onions as any of the countries named, 
and they should try to catch a little of this trade in mild 
foreign sorts. 

Varieties. 
Botanically the onion is known as Allium cepa. The 
generic name is of Celtic origin (" alV meaning hot, or 
burning). The plant belongs to the Natural Order 
LiliacecE. 

Hundreds of garden varieties have been introduced, but 
we have little positive knowledge concerning their origin. 
7 



98 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 
Fig. 45. 




'— Tdt=- 



Yellow Globe Danvers. 



Fig. 46. 




•-^^""t'*' 



Red Wetheksfield. 



ODDS AND ENDS. 



99 



The sorts most useful to the commerial grower have ah-eady 
been mentioned. The following is a list of the leading 
varieties : — 

Wether sfield (^Wethersfield Red). — The leading red 
market variety ; large, flat, coarse, reliable and prolific. 
Skin deep purplish red ; flesh white ; flavor strong. A 
good keeper. 

Danvers {^Danvers Yellow, Round Danvers, Yellow 
Globe Daiivers). — This is undoubtedly the most reliable 
market sort, very prolific ; sure to form good bulbs ; early, 



Fig. 47. 



1892 

BYW.A.3.9.©. 




Large Red Globe. 



good-sized, round, smooth. Neck very small, flesh solid, 
fine grained. A good keeper. 

White Globe {^SoutJiport White Globe). — This is the best 
of the white market varieties. It is of fine white color, 
and of perfect globe shape. Large, prolific, reliable. 
Cure it in the shade if practicable, as this will prevent 
discoloration of the skin. A good keeper. 



100 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



Red Globe and Yellow Globe (Southpori) resemble the 
White Globe quite closely except in color. 



Fig. 48. 



Bsa " 

.B.&©, 




Yellow Dutch. 



Fig. 4;. 




ExTKA Early Keu. 



Yellow Dutch {Yellow Strasbui'g). — This variety is pro- 
lific, producing solid and fine flavored bulbs. Shape 
somewhat flat. Largely grown' for market, and for sets. 
An excellent keeper. 



ODDS AND ENDS. 



101 



Extra Early ^^^.— Hardy, reliable, growing quickly to 
fair size. A favorite sort for mucky soils, and much grown 
for red sets. It keeps well. 

Silver Skin {^White Portugal, Philadelphia White).— An 
onion of medium size, handsome appearance, and mild 
flavor. Largely grown for pickling and for white sets. 
. Spanish King.— A very large, yellow, mild foreign sort, 
well adapted for the new onion culture. 

Fig. ^o. 




Pkizetaker. 



Prizetaker,— The best of the very large, mild onions, 
and most suitable -for the new system of onion growing. 
It resembles the imported bulbs sold in our markets as 
" Spanish onions." 

Silver King..— A very large, white, mild-flavored variety 
of the Italian type. Like all others of that class, it is not 
a good keeper. 

White Victoria.— A large, white, handsome, mild- flavored 
variety, well suited for the new onion culture. 



102 



ONIOiVS FOR PROFIT. 



Red Victo7'ia. — Resembles the White Victoria in every 
respect except color. 

Bermuda. — There are two kinds of Bermuda onions, a 
pink and a white one. They make large, flat onions^ but 
are less reliable than the Italian sorts. 

JVciv Queen {Fea?'l of the Southern States). — A flat 
white onion of small size and quick growth. In the South 
(according to Prof. Massey) a good crop of fall onions 
can be raised from seed of this variety sown in August, and 
it will be found very salable for pickling onions. 

Fig. .si. 




JVew Mammoth Pouipeii. — A very large onion, of red 
color and mild flavor. Valuable for transplanting in the 
South. 

Maggiajola. — An early, flat, white onion, of small size ; 
good for pickles. 

B arietta. — The earliest of all ; very small ; useful for 
bunching, and especially for pickling. 



ODDS AND ENDS. 



103 



Giant Rocca. — A large onion, of dark-red color and 
round shape ; valuable for transplanting in the South. 



Fir,. 52. 




Large White Italian Tripoli. 

Large White Italian Tripoli.—.^ very large, white onion, 
of fine flavor. One of the best white market onions for 
the Southern States. 

Fig. 53. 




White Pearl. 



White Pearl {Extra Early Pearl, American Pearl, 
BloomsdalePearl).—A fine white, early onion; good for 
sets, and pickling. 



104 



ONIONS FOR PROFIT. 



Mammoth Red Tripoli. — Resembles White Tripoli in 
every way, except color. 

Potato Onions {Multipliers). — These produce neither seed 
nor top-sets, but increase by division of the original bulb. 
They are early, and valuable for market, especially in 
more southern localities, but do not keep well. Their 
color is brownish-yellow. According to reports, a pure 
v/hite variety of superior merit has recently been introduced. 

Fig. 54. 




White Multiplier Onion Sets. 



Winter Onion (^Egyptian, Perennial or Tree Onion.) — 
Docs not form bulbs. The stalks are used for bunching in 
March, April and May, and the crop is often quite profit- 
able. Increased by top sets. 

Top Onion. — This, like the preceding, forms little bulbs 
on the top of the stem in the place of flowers and seeds. 
These bulbs grow in clusters, and are of about the size of 
hazelnuts. Break the clusters apart, and plant in spring, 
in the manner advised for sets. , Color red. 



HOW TO BE RICH WITH A LIT- 
TLE LAND. 

I am going to tell about Caleb Jones. 

He has the best-paying garden within a 
day's journey, and Mrs. Jones has the prettiest 
flowers. The farm is a good one, well tilled 
and kept up ; but so are a good many others. 
His land, if you see it after the crops are off, 
is about the same as that of other prosperous 
farmers ; but he always takes the first prize at 
the County Fair for pumpkins and cabbages — 
Mrs. Jones for pansies and marigolds. 

They live within four miles of the village, 
where several hundred people buy their every- 
day fruits and vegetables. One taste of Jones' 
sweet corn is enouorh to secure a customer — 
beans and peas the same. You see what a 
hold" he has on the market. 

At home they live like lords. American 
farmers have good things to eat, compared 
with the rest of the world ; but not one in a 
hundred lives like Caleb and Mrs. Jones and 
the little Joneses. 

When two men set out to do the same thing, 
and one succeeds while the other fails, there is 
apt to be a reason for it. So, when most of 
our people have plenty of wants and some 
have money to lend, there's a reason for that. 
What is it ? 



HOW TO BE RICH WITH A LITTLE LAND. 

Caleb has two or three acres of garden and 
forty times as much in farm ; but his garden 
grows larger every year, and his farm grows 
smaller. He keeps more help than anybody 
else along that road ; he has more work. His 
horses are round and sleek ; they seem to 
enjoy life. Caleb says the only difference is, 
between him and his neighbors, they are 
farmers and he is a gardener. I say, he grows 
what he can sell to advantage, and grows it so 
that he can. And this is my notion of How 
to be Rich with a Little Land. 

They are all poor farmers ; but five or six 
acres of vecretables are worth a hundred of 
wheat. — depends on the vegetables. What 
do they depend on ? 

Caleb buys his seeds of a seedsman. He 
would no more plant poor seeds than raise a 
colt from a scrawny mare. This accounts for 
his taking those prizes. His tomatoes, whether 
a cherry-size, plum-size, pear-size, or apple, are 
solid and rich in the pulp, of thin, tough skin, 
rotund, and prolific. Tomatoes of ten years ago 
were tough and watery, awkward to peel, and 
not nearly so clear and fair as Caleb's. He 
buys his seeds of a seedsman. 

There are, however, two sorts of seeds and 
seedsmen. Take cabbao;e, for instance. You 



HOW TO BE RICH WITH A LITTLE LAND. 

can't tell turnip from cabbage. A common 
practice of seedsmen is to mix them ; and, to 
prevent your finding it out, the turnips are 
killed before mixing. Cargoes of poor cabbage 
seed come from Europe at 30 cents a pound ; 
it is grown from stalks — they sell the heads. 
The best cabbage seed is grown on Long 
Island and in Bucks County, Pa., from selected 
stalks with the heads on. The seedsmen who 
mix of course have an eye to cost. They put 
in a little good seed, to avoid a total failure, 
which would injure the business. The bulk of 
the cabbage sold in this country is mixed. But 
most of the farmers and gardeners do not 
"suspect it. They sow pretty thick. If a third 
come up, it's enough ; and, if half of the plants 
make heads, they are satisfied. While of Long 
Island and Bucks County cabbage ninety-six 
or ninety-seven in a hundred seeds come up, 
and nine out of ten of the plants make full, 
round heads The difference due to the seed 
is half or two-thirds of the crop, besides the 
quality. Take, for another example, tomato 
seed. The canners save the seed in the waste ; 
it is average seed and costs nothing. Melon- 
growers sell their best melons and, late in the 
season, save seed from the culls — to sell, not to 
plant. There are tons on tons of seeds that 



HOW TO BE RICH WITH A LITTLE LAND. 

are true to name but of common quality — 
honest but poor. They came from poor plants 
and will grow poor plants. 

Do you know what a first-rate seed is ? It 
is bred up, just as a horse or cow or dog or 
hen is. Vegetables and flowers are poor in 
their natural state ; they are fair in their usual 
state ; they are rich in the proper seedsman's 
proving ground. And the richer they are the 
more unstable they are ; they tend back, as 
water runs down hill. 

A first-rate vegetable or flower seed goes 
back to a lower grade as soon as it ceases to 
feel the seedsman's care. This care is not 
cultivation ; it is sorting out and breeding up. 

Caleb trusts no seedsman's seeds in the next 
generation. He gathers no seeds himself; he 
buys of his seedsman every year; and so does 
Mrs. Jones. 

You see, the farmer's and gardener's first 
anxiety is, not plows and harrows, but seeds. 
Any plow will plow ; any harrow will harrow ; 
but first-rate seeds he must have, or fail in his 
crops. Most gardeners fail and don't know it. 

How did Caleb and Mrs. Jones pick out 
their seedsman ? They saw an advertisement — 
here it is : — 



HOW TO BE RICH WITH A LITTLE LAND. 

BURPEE'S FARM ANNUAL FREE. 
W. Atlee Burpee & Co., 4tS N. Fifth St., Philadelphia, 

to get acquainted with you, will send 
you for 25 cents four packets of 
named Sweet Peas and one packet of 
Eckford's "All the New Sweet Peas" 
mixed, with a book, " All About Sweet 
Peas," how to grow and trellis them 
so as to have flowers every day, with 
illustrations. 

Bush Lima Beans : the only true 
large Lima — probably you don't know 
what a good Lima is — 10 cents, to 
make acquaintance. 

Burpee's Surehead Cabbage, 10 
cents ; and Burpee's Melrose Melon, 
15 cents. 

Every seed we sell is to make 
acquaintance. 

Caleb said to Mrs. Jones : " Let's have that 
Farm Annual." That's how they are rich with 
a little land ; and you can. 



MANURES: 

How to Make and How to Use Them. 



A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE CHEMISTRY OF 
MANURES AND MANURE MAKING. 



This new book on the clicmistry of manures and manure making is a 
(M)iiij)lete ami really iiu])()rta,nt work, written sj)ecially for the use of fanners, 
liorticulturists, and market "gardeners, by Thank W. SKMrmis, Director of 
the Fordhook Chemical Laboratory. 

It clearly explains tlur 
principles underlying soil 
fertilization and gives the 
best known scientific meth- 
ods for i)reparing and apply- 
ing natural and artificial 
manures on the farm. It 
has been demonstrated by 
several of the State Agri- 
cultural Kxperimcnt Sta- 
tions and by scores of pro- 
gressive farmers that chcmi- 
v;i\ manures ecjual to the best 
rcinly-made mixtures can bo 
made on the farm, without 
the aid of machinery and at 
groat saving in cost. The 
dillwcnt raw materials cn- 
teriiig into the composition 
of fertilizers are plainly 
describeil, and the best com- 
mercial sources of supj)ly 
given. Considerable space 
is devoted to tried and 
proved formulas, drawn from 
the latest scientific re- 
searches in America, Eng- 
land, France, and (Jcrmany, 
Simple explanations are also given of some terms in chemical technology 
used in the State Agricultural Reports and in the general agricultural and 
horticultural literature of the day. The arrangement and classification 
are in accordance with the best scientific usage, and every formula is the 
result of actual field experiment. The preparation of this book has in- 
volved a large amount of careful work. 

Price, Postpaid, 50 Cents, 

or can be selected FREE as a premium on or- 
ders amounting to FIVE DOLLARS or more. 




HOWTOMAKE 

AND 

HOW TO USE THEM 

/r PpsllED BY '"'^-^4kvJ> 
W.ATLEE BURPEE &(? (f "" ^ 

Philadelphia. 



rUBLISITED BY 



W. ATLEE BURPEE & CO., PHILADELPHIA, PA. 



Celery for Profit, 



All agree that Celery offers greater chances lor making money 
than any other garden crop. The difficulties encountered by the 
old methods of growing, however, made success uncertain, and sure 
only with comparatively few expert growers. Modern methods 
make all this uncertainty a thing of the past. From the same 
area which would give |100.00 in any other vegetable, you 

may take $400.00 or even 
$500.00 in Celery, if you 
know how. Tliis new 
book, just published, is 
written by T. Greiner, 
author of Onions for 
Profit, and other books 
on gardening. It tells 
how to dispense with 
nine-tenths of the labor 
generally thought neces- 
sary in Celery growing, 
and how to make the 
business pay really big 
profits. Under the right 
culture and conditions 
several thousand dollars' 
worth of Celery can be 
raised on a single acre. 
The l)ook is thoroughly 




complete in every detail, and is embellished with many helpful 

and original illustrations. Here is a glimpse of the table of 

.contents : — 

Generalities-An Introdiu:tion-Tlie Early Celery— The New Celery Culture— 
The Irrigation Problem— The Fall and Winter Crop— Winter Storage— Mar- 
keting Problems— Varieties, etc. , etc. 

Price, Postpaid, 30 Cents, 

or can be selected FREE as a premium with any 
order amounting to THREE DOLLARS or more. 



PUBLISHED BY 

W. ATLEE BURPEE & CO., PHILADELPHIA, PA. 



Burpee's 
Farm Annual 

is cheerfully given free to an3^one wanting good 
seeds. But as each copy in quarter-million editions 
costs nearly fifteen cents, — when everything is 
counted ; you see we must have some rules — and 
we dislike rules. 

If you want seeds and have not a copy of the 
Farm Annual send us a postal card to-day, and 
it will come free by return mail. 

If you order, no matter how little, and desire 
the Farm Annual, you have only to ask for it with 
your order. 

The Edition for 1893 

is better than ever before. A handsome book of 172 pages ; 
it tells all about the best seeds that gfow, including rare 
novelties of real merit ; honest descriptions and hundreds 
of illustrations, with beautiful colored plates painted from 
nature. Important new features for 1893, — original and 
interesting. 

Any seed buyer can have a copy free, whether our 
customer or not, no matter. We count on a fair 
hearing. 

If you are not a seed buyer, but merely want a 
nice book — and it is a nice book, — you should enclose 
ten cents, which is only part of the cost. 

Put yourself in our place. 

W. Atlee Burpee & Co., Seed Growers, 

Philadelphia, Pa. * 


















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